Second chance to life
by melan anime
Summary: "You are running out of time. One of us... one of you is in a terrible danger. He may not make it." It was Ancient Fairy Dragon's words to her master. And now the old 5D's team must find a way to save their dear companion from an enemy which no one ever won. More details inside. RxR please!
1. Ruka's Nightmare

_Ok, so you decided to read my story! Wow! I'm really glad about it and I hope you will really like it. _

_I have the main theme in my mind but watching how it goes may be long or short story. And for the record criticism is always welcome. It depends on you guys._

_Disclaimer 1: I don't own the cover image! I found it on the Internet, so the credit goes to the original artist._

_Disclaimer 2: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I own only the title and the plot of this story._

* * *

**Prologue**

_Six years after Team 5D's split up, each member has moved on to chase their dreams..._

_Aki had just finished her medical study and now works as a doctor at a hospital. She is doing her best to become better so that one day she can make Yusei proud. However, she plans on going back to Neo Domino City and stay there soon._

_Crow continues dueling as a professional team duelist with two other teammates. Currently, he doesn't have any plans to go back and stay there yet, though he visits Neo Domino quite often to see Yusei and the orphans._

_Jack had become a professional duelist too, but he duels alone and is the King of Ride Ace Dueling League. He also plans to go back to challenge Yusei again; only if he manages to defeat him will he be able to consider himself as the true Duel World King._

_The twins are still living with their parents in London. Rua is taking his first steps as a Turbo Duelist while Ruka is studying art in college as a freshman. She really loves the subject and is doing her very best._

_And of course, Yusei is still living in the same garage which is filled with fond memories. He is a scientist at the same place as his father once was._

_Everyone is living their life to the fullest. _

_But for one of them, the time is up and the countdown begins... _

_Can his friends save him in time? Even if that means that they have to travel through space and time?_

* * *

**Chapter 1 - Ruka's Nightmare**

_Ruka's POV_

"Ruka? ... Ruka?" a familiar voice resounded in my head.

Am I... _dreaming_?

I didn't know where I was or what was happening. I just knew that I felt dizzy and tired, though I remembered saying goodnight to my brother, Rua...

It was late; I wanted to sleep after a long and exhausting day but he didn't want to. I recalled seeing him sitting comfortably on the sofa, eating a slice of pizza_—what was he doing with all those food on the table though?—_and watching some turbo dueling shows on television. It was his dream to become a Turbo Duelist like Yusei, Jack and Crow one day.

I know I should've convinced him to sleep as well_—_otherwise he wouldn't wake up in the morning, as always_—_but this time, he was watching one of Crow's duels and I'd decided to let him watch it without disturbing him with my you-have-to-sleep-now speeches. As much I'd wanted to watch Crow's duel too, I was really tired; my eyelids were drooping _—_a sign that sleep would come to me anytime soon.

With that, I washed up and hopped onto my bed, spending one more moment to relax, trying to find a comfortable position, before falling into a deep slumber...

Until a nagging voice roused me from my sleep...

"Ruka? ... Ruka?"

It was that voice again...!

I tried ignoring it.

...

"Ruka? ... Ruka?!" it called again; this time, with more assertiveness.

_It just wouldn't give up, would it?_

With a metal sigh, I allowed my brain to focus... and felt a strong breeze swept across my face.

I was acutely aware that I was no longer in my bedroom...

Cautiously, I pried my eyes open, vision slowly adjusting.

_What's happening? Where am I? What is this place? _— These questions immediately filled my head. I was pretty sure that fear and confusion were apparent on my face by now.

Standing up and looking around, I realized that I was in the middle of a forest. I felt somewhat familiar with this place, as if I had been here before but I couldn't remember it. My brain didn't help me at all and everything seemed like a blurred memory...

Another mighty wind ruffled my hair and caused the trees to sway forcefully.

The forest was angry.

_No, this can't be happening..._ It had been years since the last time I was here. If only I could remember...

"Ruka?"

I stiffened at the voice calling my name. "Who's there?"

"Have you forgotten about me already, Ruka?"

"W-who are you? H-how do you know my name?" I inquired, voice trembling.

"You are running out of time. You must hurry."

"What are you talking about? Who are you? Where am I?" I demanded once more.

Alright, so by now, I was totally freaking out. Its words were disconcerting and I began to grow uneasy as I remained in its presence. _The time is up? What is that supposed to mean?_

"You and your friends are the only ones who can do it."

The wind grew more powerful and my heart began to beat faster. I wished I could remember...

This forest, that voice...

_..._

_NO! It can't be... It couldn't..._

The answer had struck me so quickly that I didn't even have the chance to close my eyes. I just stood there, shaking in fear.

_No, this can't be happening. Not again... Not after so many years..._

"Ancient Fairy Dragon?!" I cried, "Where are you?"

"Follow my voice, Ruka."

But her voice was getting softer by the second...

"No, wait! Don't go! Tell me what's happening!"

"I can't tell you; you must see it for yourself, Ruka."

I stood like a statue, not daring to move an inch or a muscle. I had an unsettling feeling about the whole arrangement, because one thing was absolutely positive: something terrible is going to happen, or worse, is happening already.

"Come, Ruka," the dragon urged.

After a few minutes to calm myself down, I was finally able to gather up my courage and walk towards the source of voice. I was afraid of what I would see if I stepped out of the forest but I didn't stop. I _couldn't_ stop. Ancient Fairy was calling for me and I simply had to follow. She wanted to show me something, but I had a strong feeling in my heart that whatever it was, I wouldn't like it.

I began to feel a formidable force coming straight in front of me; I knew that the answer was only a few steps away...

"No!" I yelled, stubbornly shutting my eyes. And despite knowing that no one would be able to help me, I continued to beg, "Rua...! Help me! Call me back!"

I didn't want to see this...

I was a coward...

I was afraid to face this...

I was never a brave one...

But just then, a soothing voice comforted me. "You can do this, Ruka... You have to see it."

_I can to this_; _I have to. I can be brave like the others. I must stand up... on my own... without Rua's help._

With my newfound determination, I took a deep breath and slowly opened my eyes. However, my face was filled with immediate horror at the scene unfolding before me. There it was; an ancient battle, more than five thousand years ago. I had seen this battle before. Five dragons were fighting against the familiar enemies once more. Nothing was unknown to me. The Crimson Dragon and his servants were battling the Earthbound Gods.

The dragons, _our_ dragons... I saw Stardust, Yusei's loyal companion; Red Demons, Jack's very soul; Black Rose, Aki's ace monster; Ancient Fairy, my protector and friend; and, lastly, Life Stream, the last dragon which Crimson Dragon released from Power Tool Dragon when he gave Rua his own Birthmark.

They were all there fighting the Earthbound Gods. But how was that possible? The battle took place more than five thousand years ago and we had already faced and defeated the Gods. A few years had passed, but a lot had changed. First of all, none of us was a Signer anymore. In our last ride together, the Crimson Dragon took away our Birthmarks and I hadn't spoken to Ancient Fairy after that time.

Her searching for contact with me could only mean that something important was about to happen. But I couldn't find out what was wrong this time just by showing me the past... Did it mean that the Dark Signer would appear again? I saw the scene which Ancient Fairy had put her body as a shield and got caught in the stone. Even now, I knew what had happened; it was still a painful memory to see. After all, it wasn't the first time I saw this battle, but it had been years since the last time I saw this.

"Why are you showing me this, Ancient Fairy?"

There was no reply, but instead, the scene changed. Everything seemed the same at first, with our dragons fighting again and all, but it was actually a different battle. I saw our dragons; however, this time, my eyes caught something new.

Yes, I was sure of it. A new dragon was there and I knew exactly who he was. It was Black Feather; Pearson's card which he entrusted to Crow before he died. But there were still five dragons. And if Black Feather appeared, then who was missing?

I tried to look more closely...

"Oh no!" I gasped, feeling a slight twinge of pain in my heart "Stardust…"

All the others were there, at the same place, but this time there were no enemies. The Earthbound Gods weren't there, but if that was the case, why were our dragons fighting? And more importantly, who were they fighting with? I hadn't had the slightest clue of what was happening but I could feel it. Something was completely wrong this time; it was different in many ways. I saw the ancient battle twice in my life, but now, this was something new. Could it have been possible? The… no, I didn't want to think about it...

This fight was sharp and compulsive. The Crimson Dragon was in pain and it wasn't the only one. Ancient Fairy was crying while Black Rose was in terrible sorrow. Every Dragon was suffering; even Red Demons allowed a single teardrop to fall from his eye.

"Ancient Fairy, what's happening? Is this the future?"

She didn't answer and just kept crying.

"Where is Stardust?" I questioned, growing restless.

Still, there was no response.

"Please tell me," I begged.

"You must hurry Ruka."

"Ancient Fairy…"

"You are running out of time. One of us... one of you is in a terrible danger. He may not make it."

"Who is in danger?" I implored. My heart pounded loudly in my ears, as if ready to jump out of my chest anytime now.

"He is looking for him."

"Who is?" I asked again.

"The last enemy."

I was afraid to ask who that might be, but I had to. "Who is the last enemy?"

Again, she didn't reply.

My mind was in a total frenzy and I tried to recollect my thoughts about what had just happened. _Someone is in danger... someone dear to me. But who is the enemy now?_

In my life, I had to face many of them; the Demonic Monkey King, the Dark Signer, Aporia. I fought with everything I had but I was never alone; Rua was always with me, as well as Ancient Fairy, Regulus, Torunka, my friends and the Signers too. We fought together as a team. We were able to defeat any threat and we would do the same now.

"Just name him and we will fight him together. We are a team, we split up, but with or without our Birthmarks, we are still connected with the bonds of friendship. We'll beat him like all the others," I assured her, trying to sound confident. But deep down, I knew that this time, it wouldn't be that easy.

"You cannot defeat him; no one has ever defeated him before."

"There must be a way to win."

"You can only trick him, Ruka, and gain more time... But you'll never win a battle against him."

"Is there such rival? Does it even exist?" I asked.

But she ignored my question, yet again. "You must hurry. You and your friends are the only ones who can save him."

"But who is he?"

"The last opponent in a man's life."

My mind couldn't think straight right now. After a long silence, I cleared my throat, opened my mouth, but swallowed my words again. In the end, I could only utter a soft "Ancient Fairy…"

"You must hurry…" Her voice grew to a small whisper. It was not long before her figure began to drift further away from me as well...

"No, don't go..." I murmured, realizing that my time in the Spirit Word was almost over. Chasing after her shadow, I called, "Tell me more. What can I...no, what we can do to save him?"

"Regulus will visit you." Her voice was barely audible above the howling sound of the wind. "Wait for him."

And with those last words, she vanished into a blast of wind and left me standing there alone.

"I will, Ancient Fairy, I promise..."

Without noticing myself, tears began rolling down my cheeks.

One of my friends was in danger and there was only one dragon missing from the battle...

Only one wasn't fighting, and that could only mean...

"Yusei…" I breathed as I closed my eyes, fearing for the worst that will happen in the future.

* * *

_First chapter is over! I took me 2 days to write it but it's worth it. What do you think guys? Liked it? Hated it? Any idea who is the enemy? Be waiting for the next chapter._

_My special thanks to my lovely betas _**_Lover333_**_ and _**_LittleKrus_**_!_

_If you liked it, review! If you don't, review anyway ^_^_

_P.S. I want to thank my friend _**_Gotta be Annoying_**_ (or -G-A) too because I was inspired by one of her stories!_


	2. Terrified

**Chapter 2 – Terrified**

_Rua's POV_

Despite having my eyes glued to the television screen, my attention was quickly stolen by a cry from my sister. "Rua...! Help me! Call me back!"

_Was she having a nightmare?_ I wondered. Nonetheless, I rushed to her room immediately.

Knocking on her mahogany door, I called, "Ruka?"

Silence.

"Ruka?" I tried once more, knocking more frantically this time. "I'm going in!"

"Ancient Fairy..."

My eyes widened with alarm upon hearing that name. My first guess was that she was in the Spirit World, and _nothing_ ever went right whenever she was there. The last I remembered, she was almost trapped in there, unable to leave and in comatose for a month.

_Well, no time to be courteous then..._

I turned the doorknob, yelling her name, only to find a very frightened Ruka sleeping on the bed. Her body was curled up in a defensive position, as if she was afraid of something, while she just kept on repeating, "No, don't go..."

Rushing to her bedside and grabbing her hand, I tried to assure her, "Ruka, I'm here..."

She must have been terrified... Her palm was unusually sweaty; her eyes were tightly shut and beads of perspiration trickled down her face.

This scene was awfully familiar... She was calling for me; but yet, I couldn't stay by her side and help her, no matter how bad I wished I could — just like sixteen years ago...

And just like sixteen years ago, I'd never felt so useless before...

...

"I will, Ancient Fairy, I promise..." she whispered.

To my utmost horror, she began to shed tears. _Just what was she experiencing in there...?!_

I tried to shake her awake, begging desperately, "Ruka, wake up...!"

...

"Yusei..."

I arched an eyebrow. _Yusei...?_

Then, her eyes sprang open abruptly. I was finally able to let out a relieved breath.

_Thank Ra she is alright... Man, she'd really scared me this time..._

For the first time, I was glad that I was awake; otherwise, I would've slept like a log and wouldn't be able to hear Ruka's screams.

She scanned the room, breathing heavily. Moreover, as soon as her grey-gold eyes found mine, she sat up and began bombarding me with information I couldn't comprehend. "Rua, it's Yusei! I-It must be him!"

_What the hell? _I gave her a confused look.

"I-It must be him! Only Stardust is missing... Yusei is in danger!" she cried, her voice turning high and hysterical.

"Ruka, calm down...!"

"But—!"

"Shh, it's okay," I assured, trying to comfort her. "It's just a bad dream — nothing more."

"No, you don't understand," she insisted. "It wasn't a dream. We have to help, we must hurry!"

"Please, calm down! You had a bad dream, that's all."

"I told you, it wasn't a dream. You have to believe me!"

I grabbed her shoulders firmly with my two hands. "Look at me, Ruka."

And she did.

However, her eyes looked like they were haunted by some inner anxiety.

...

_I'm her brother. I must protect her no matter what, even from a bad dream._

Gulping, I told her, "It's okay, Ruka. Everything is fine; Yusei is fine too; no one is in any danger."

I knew I was trying to comfort her, but for some reason, I wasn't sure about my own words anymore. Somewhere deep down, my intuition was telling me that something was wrong this time. Something was _very_ wrong this time.

_But_... _how am I supposed to convince Ruka_, I wondered,_ if I can't even convince myself?_

_._..

_No._ I mentally shook off that negative thought. "You had a bad dream — a very realistic one. But it is just a dream. Everything will be okay."

"I told you, it _wasn't_ a dream," she repeated, sounding annoyed. "Why wouldn't you believe me? Ancient Fairy called and showed me the ancient battle against the Earthbound Gods"—I stared at her, mouth agape and completely speechless—"and then, she showed me another battle; I'm sure it's the future this time — not the past. And it's Yusei! Only Stardust is missing from the battle, and all the others are in pain because he isn't there."

_What kind of brother am I? I don't even know how to help her at all... Should I say something?_

But just then, Ruka held on to my hands, looking at me with pleading eyes, though her words suggested seriousness. "You have to believe me, Rua. Yusei is in danger. Ancient Fairy contacted me in order to show me this vision so that we will be able to help him. We have to help Yusei," she paused for a moment. "He needs us."

Right. I'd almost forgotten about that special ability of hers — that strange ability to connect with the Spirit World. Still, she had not used it for… how long? Six years?

But right now, she sounded _so sure_, as if it was the truth. Her seriousness was scaring me. And as much as I didn't want to believe it, Yusei must've been in danger. After all, my sister wouldn't lie to me, right?

"I believe you, Ruka. But can you explain what happened?"

Her distressed face turned into a pleased one—happy that I finally believed her—but it only lasted a few seconds before it turned austere.

And she began telling me about her vision...

...

By the time she finished, I was aghast and my heart was pumping spastically. "What is that supposed to mean?"

She didn't reply and just looked downwards; she had no idea either.

"What can we do then?"

She merely shrugged her shoulders. And we both stayed in silence for a long while...

Until Ruka suddenly jumped off her bed and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"To call Yusei of course!" she replied plainly, as if it was completely obvious.

And it was, but…

"Wait!" I stopped her. "We don't know what time it is in Neo Domino. Maybe we should figure that out first? Just in case we end up calling at an improper timing?"

I knew I was being pathetic. It sounded like the right thing to do, but not in a crucial time like _this_.

She paused for a moment and thought through my words, but after a minute, she shook her head. "No, I need to know if he is okay. I'm sure if I explain it to him, he won't get mad at us, even if we call him at an improper time."

With that, she went to the living room and grabbed the phone to call Yusei.

I went out after Ruka, watching her from a distance as she paced to and fro in the room, feeling utterly helpless. I wanted to help—to do _something_—but what?

She waited for what seemed like a long time, but was probably only a minute, before she put down the phone and dialed his number again. "C'mon, Yusei... Pick up your phone..."

"No response?" I asked, trying to hide my worries.

She kept repeating the action over and over again, only to end up disappointed every time, while my heart sank further with each futile attempt of calling Yusei. I prayed with all my might that Ruka's vision wasn't true.

"He's not answering... Rua, this is serious. I'm telling you, something is wrong!"

"Maybe he's sleeping," I guessed, "or working in his lab."

Truthfully, I couldn't even believe my words. _But just because he doesn't pick up the phone, doesn't mean that he can't be doing other things right now. And I must say... I can list a lot of them._

"Or maybe he's eating," I continued, "or taking a bath... Or maybe he's outside with his D-Wheel, or even dueling someone... Or—"

"Or maybe he can't pick up the phone because he is not okay." She gave me that keep-your-mouth-shut look. "I'm going to call Martha."

_Why didn't I think of that before?_

_... Probably because only Ruka will be able to think of something like that..._

"Hi Martha. It's me, Ruka," she greeted while I tried to observe her facial expressions. "No, no; I'm okay and so is Rua… Sorry to bother you, but I was wondering... I can't reach Yusei on his phone and"—she paused suddenly, becoming wide-eyed—"you're planning to call us?"

Uh oh... _Not_ good. I hoped against all hope that everything would be fine.

Her grip around the handset tightened and I saw stress lines forming distinctively on her brows. "Is Yusei alright?"

I could feel my stomach shriveling and fluttering. We probably both knew the answer already; we just didn't want to admit it.

"Where is he now?" she asked in a brittle voice. In any moment now, she might cry, or worse, faint. I gulped and licked my dry lips, preparing for the worst.

Ruka drew in a sharp breath and dropped the phone, the object landing on the floor with a soft thud; her eyes were blank and wandering.

I gawked at her, waiting impatiently for her to say something, but nothing came. "Ruka, what's wrong?"

She was struggling to control her quavering voice as she delivered, "Yu-Yusei... He's in the hospital... H-he's been in coma since yesterday..."

I didn't understand, as if my brain had short-circuited and needed to be rebooted. Everything around me was fast-forward while I was motionless in the middle of it all.

It... couldn't be... But... Yusei is the strongest duelist. How could he...

So, this was Ruka's nightmare; and it was all true. She was right; Ancient Fairy tried to warn us. She said that time was running out and we had to hurry. Now, I see that it was already over; we were too late...

_No. There's still hope; there must be. Yusei cannot die... Wait! He's in coma, so he's not dead yet! At least it's not can still save him... But how?_

I looked over to my sister. She must be feeling as confused as I was, but I shouldn't let fear or confusion take me down. I had to be brave — for Yusei; for Ruka; for myself.

I hadn't had the slightest idea on what should I do, but I could start by being strong.

_Ruka must be counting on me, and I will not let her down._

I approached her and gave her a comforting hug."We should call the others tomorrow and inform them about this." The thought of breaking this news to Aki was unbearable...

At first, Ruka was just sniffling, until she was unable to hold her tears any longer and started to cry in my arms. Stroking her hair, I tried to calm her down. I wanted to say something encouraging, but nothing came to my mind currently. Grief was growing like cancer in my heart, but I shouldn't cry; I had to be brave.

We stayed like this for a long time.

...

In the end, after she composed herself, it was Ruka who broke the silence. "We must save him. Ancient Fairy told me that we must hurry. Rua, do you think we can still save him?"

It didn't sound like a question to me at all. Instead, she just wanted a confirmation; an assurance; something to remind her—to remind us—that there was still hope, as long as we never gave up. She only needed to hear one answer, which I was more than willing to give. "Of course we can. There must be a way, and we'll find it no matter what. You said Ancient Fairy told you that we're the only ones who can save Yusei, right?"

She nodded. "She told me that he is also looking for him."

He?

Yes, he.

The faceless threat...

The strong opponent...

The dreadful enemy...

Ancient Fairy had said that no one had ever defeated him...

There was only one of him, and I knew who he was...

There was no other like him anyway...

And he was Death.

* * *

_Oups! That chapter was too dark. I don't want to make you sad guys so don't be mad at me. We still have long way to the end and it was interesting to read Rua's thoughts right? Right?!_

_And the last opponent in a man's life is… Death! We can't win a battle against him can we? We can trick him for more time but never win._

_My thanks to: _**_Gotta be Annoying_**_, _**_Lady DesTiNy of Rose_**_, _**_YugiohObsessed_**_, __**Lover333**__, __**gobstoneninja**__, __**Tornpeltoflife**__, __**SoccerChick1918**__ and __**Guest**__ for their reviews._

_My special thanks to my lovely betas _**_Lover333_**_ and _**_LittleKrus_**_!_

_If you liked it, review! If you don't, review anyway ;)_


	3. Breakdown

**Chapter 3 – Breakdown**

Aki's Pov

I check the time from my phone. Damn, one more hour; and they say airplanes are the fastest way to travel. But time has his own unique speed, which changes according to everyone's mood. When you're happy, time runs fast; when you feel sad, time slows; and when you rush like I do then times simply freezes. How unfair!

I looked my phone one more time and then I give up. It's pointless checking the time every second; it won't move faster as much as I want to. I put my phone back to my peruse lying back on my seat. I was dreaming for this moment everyday from the day I left to study onboard. I was thinking of it in so many ways and mixed feelings but never, I mean never, thought it would be like this. Not even close.

Actually it wasn't the first time I was traveling back home as I had visited it several times for happy and relaxing breaks from my hard years of studies. But this time it was deferent, totally deferent; maybe my studies aren't finished yet as I have many years ahead of me with hard work, but I deservedly earned my first title. Today is the first time I'm going back to Neo Domino city as Doctor Izayoi Aki.

I still remember my first Christmas as a college student that I spend them with my family; my dad managed to get three days off from his work to spend them with his family and we opened our presents together. It was the first and only time when Yusei join us at the New Year Eve and I was so happy to have him with me that I almost spill that I…

My memory was cut immediately at the thought of Yusei and I stirred in my seat hiding my face in the palms of my hands. I felt hot tears preparing to roll down from my eyes and I tried hard to prevent them. Something almost impossible and with a quick move I unfastened my seat belt and headed to the bathroom trying hard to hold myself; at least until I close the door behind me and hide everyone and everything from seeing me burst into tears, unable to control myself anymore.

"Why Yusei?" I whispered between sobs.

He never did something wrong to deserve this. This isn't fair! But life isn't fair. I started berthing heavily trying to calm myself but the only thing I managed was start crying again. I felt my head burning and my vision became blurred which wasn't only due to my tears, and as my stomach shuffled I bent over the toilet, preparing myself from the worst. Fortunately nothing happened. I had nothing to vomit after all since I haven't eaten much the last few days. No wonder why I was felling weakness.

I got up and threw cold water on my face and rinse my mouth to chase away the sour taste of nausea. I almost scared when I looked my reflection in the mirror. I was a mess; pale, with black circles and red eyes from crying. The agony and anguish was written all over on my face; whoever saw me would think that I am insane but I didn't care. I cared only for Yusei's safety.

How we ended up here?

My memory went back 3 days; when Martha called me to transfer the terrible news. I was at work that day and I don't remember much of the conversation. At the beginning I was happy form her call. She asked me if I am good with my health, how is my academic progress and several others things; I replied excited until I asked her to tell me their news from Neo Domino city. From then on I don't remember much. My mind froze, my heart stopped beating and the whole world hid from my eyes.

The next thing I remember was that my nose was burning from whatever they put me to smell and small smacks on my face to wake up. I was lying on the floor with the doctor and a nurse over me.

I remember Rua's call as well the same day. He said something about Ruka; that she had a nightmare, a vision that Ancient Fairy showed to her, but I didn't really pay attention to the details. I remember when the clipboard and some papers as my phone also dropped from my hands as I pressed one hand to my mouth and the other to my stomach. One second later I run to the nearest bathroom and throw up. I stand in the lady's room for more than one hour trying to calm my stomach, my mind and my heart, all at the same time. Until a nurse showed up and informed me that the doctor gave me the permission to leave and call him when I manage to feel better. Of course I never felt better, except the fact that I didn't vomit again; but perhaps this is a result of barely eating, because I couldn't swallow anything.

I don't even remember how I managed to get time off from my work indefinitely, or arranged with my teachers in college for the days I will absent and the lessons, which I will lose. I wasn't thinking anything other than Yusei.

I searched for the nearest and faster flight straight to New Demino and booked up the ticket through Internet paying a lot of money, since I didn't have time to waste on searching for the cheapest flight, but honestly I didn't care. My dad has a lot of money and I'm able to make my own money now.

I called my parents to inform them about everything and my arrival in 3 days. I can tell form their reaction that I really shocked them but they say nothing about my reaction to the whole situation; I was leaving my work and my studies aside without knowing when I will be able to return again and I booked an (expensive) ticket so can came back as soon as possible. They told me they will be at the airport to take me home and took care of myself since then.

I called Martha too; she was contrite as much as I was. It was an awful conversation since none of us could consoled the other but we managed to communicate that once I get there we will meet each other and visit Yusei at the hospital and talk with the doctors. I still have no idea what happen or why and how it happened. I will find out when I will go to hospital; for now I care only for only one fact: Yusei fell into a coma four days ago, nothing else matters.

I remember the calls with some of my friends too. We all agree to come back in Neo Domino city and visit Yusei. Crow couldn't afford a ticket like mine so he will fly to Neo Domino in 3 days from today. Rua find a way with his Turbo Duels lessons but Ruka couldn't leave her studies easily. She is a freshman and it's very likely to lose the year if she missed some lessons. I have no idea what she did and be able to get permission to leave now and make up for the missing days. Both of them found tickets and will arrive tomorrow.

I heard from the loudspeaker that soon we are landing in New Domino airport and we must return to our seats and tie our belts. Thank Ra we are here. I got out of the bathroom and run back to my seat feeling a little nervous. I wasn't sure if I wanted to face all this and now that I'm worrying because I'm getting closer to my worst nightmare, times suddenly accelerated; before I realized it I was in my mother's lap. I don't even remember when we landed at the airport and how I manage to pick up my baggage and not someone else accidentally.

"You are ok?" my mother whispered to my ear "I was worrying about you" then she took a closer look "My Ra Aki, what happen to you?" almost shouted with wide-eyes.

"Mama?" I took a look around forgotten her question already "where is papa?" I couldn't see him anywhere.

"He stayed behind to park the car" she explained immediately "but he will meet us soon" and she stared at me again, examined my condition "Aki when did you ate or slept for last time?"

"Hmm" I mused trying to remember but I couldn't recover "I don't know…"

She shook her head stroking my hair gently "You look terrible sweetie" she commented my appearance "definitely you need some rest"

But how can I rest it a time like this? When Yusei is in hospital fighting for his life?

"Aki?" I heard my dad's familiar voice from distance and I lift my head trying to spot him in the crowd.

"Papa!" I cried when he came closer and I threw myself into his arms as he hugged me protective.

"Your mother and I were worrying a lot about you and I can see we were right; you didn't take care yourself at all"

I didn't replay; he was right and I was ready to start crying again.

"Came on lets go home before you will collapse from fatigue. Even a zombie looks more alive than you" and he gave me a dry laugh.

"Papa…" I started looking at him apologetically, but I had no idea what to say or how explained myself to him.

But he was right. My mother was looking at me with eyes full of agony; they are worrying about me. "I'm so sorry papa… I just…"

"Ssh, everything is ok" he muttered fondly trying to comfort me.

"But…" I tried again but he cut me off placing one finger to my lips.

"We will talk later, now we must go home and take care of you" and he took my luggage as my mother placing one hand on my shoulders, leading me outside the airport.

As my dad driving back home no one spoke. I was lost in my own hell of emotions; my mother was in a worrying silence checking at me every now and then, and my dad's attention was on the road.

"Sweetie goes upstairs and gets some rest a little before you crashes" my mom suggested when we arrived at home and I nod "take a shower and then go to sleep ok?"

"Yes mom, I will" I answered her as I climbed the stairs to my room.

I should be happy going back home but I was exactly as my mother said: ready to crashes. My feet leaded me almost mechanically and I opened my room's door feeling somehow lost into new emotions; and one of them was guild. Yes, I was feeling guilty towards to my parents. As if I hadn't already many things to concern me.

Yusei was in a coma and not only I couldn't help him but I made my parents sad as well. They are worrying about me; sure they are worrying for Yusei too but they are my parents and I am their daughter. And I must be a terrible daughter for making them worrying more. What is wrong with me? I can't do anything right; I can't help Yusei, I can't look after myself, I made my parents unhappy. I felt completely useless; another unpleasant feeling to joining all the other.

A knock on the door put me out of my thoughts but I didn't answer.

"Aki?" It was my dad "May I came in?"

"Sure" I said. I have nothing to hide after all. Yes, I was supposed to be sleeping but I didn't care if he finds me sitting on the edge of my bed still wearing my traveling clothes.

"Why you are not sleeping Aki?" he gave me a closer look placing himself in bed next to me "You are tired and exhausted, it's all over you"

"I can't sleep" I started but I couldn't hold it anymore; I looked him straight in his eyes opening my mouth chancing the topic of our conversation "I'm really sorry dad, I didn't want making you worrying about me but I couldn't…" my voice faded as it stuck on the tip of my tongue and I couldn't spill a single word.

"… think anything else than Yusei" my father gently finished my sentence for me "I know and I perfectly understand Aki…"

Does he? Is it possible he had figured it out? The way I feel about Yusei?

"… but you won't make things better by neglecting yourself"

"But I can't… I feel so…" I paused thinking; so… what? Even I didn't know.

"I understand how you feel Aki. You care for your friend safety; I care too, the fact that you are here it's because of him, but you won't help him by leaving yourself getting drunk from your emotion"

"I know, you are right but it's just…" I was both of confused and lost; and definitely useless, unable to do something right. I couldn't even think straight to make a whole sentence.

"Alright Aki" his voice was sharp and made me look at him in surprised but his face was telling me that he wasn't angry at all "If Yusei was here, then what he would say to you?"

"Hmm" I mused and closed my eyes thinking the only man who saved me in many ways. I almost hear him whispering in my ear making me feeling better. I wished more than anything I could hear the pleasant sound of his voice again. "He would tell me to be strong".

"So why you do exactly the opposite?"

I looked my dad in the eyes. He was definitely right but… "I'm not strong and I will never be" I was weak and right now I was feeling completely lost. More lost than the day that Divine found me on a small street.

He mingled his eyebrows staring at me with a weird tough expression on his face; but not angry "what he would tell you in a response like this?" he asked with cold voice.

I closed my eyes as I remembered Yusei. I draw his face in my mind; this beautiful face of his with those cobalt blue eyes. I am still dreaming those eyes from the last time he stared and me; that night on the garage it was one of my most pleasant and valuables memories. It was the first time when Yusei looked at me, as I was something more than just a friend or companion.

"He would tell me to do my best and never give up smiling" I replied with no emotion as my memories traveled me back in time.

'_Don't forget to smile; there's no one in the world with a smile better than yours'_ I heard his voice echoing in my head.

Since that night I never give up smiling. I did my best and I'm still trying hard. But everything I have done, every single step in my life was for him. He is the only one who can put this smile on my face. I placed on hand in my heart, which starts beating faster. I took a deep breath opening my eyes.

I looked my dad, which he was still staring at me with this tough and decisive expression on his face. I breathe out allowing myself to relax. After three days of suffering, finally I was able to think straight and be able to realize what my dad was trying to do; the same thing that Yusei tried to teach me all those years ago.

I won't give up. I own to Yusei; he saved me, he was there for me, he always was there and now it's my turn to do the same. I will stand up to my feet and take care of myself in order to help Yusei. After three days of leaving hell I manage to smile again and when I did my father smiled too.

"Those are wise words from someone that young. No wonder why everyone who knows him, love him that much. Now get some sleep" he ordered "you are going to need all your strength. When you get some rest you will eat something, your mother is cooking for you" and he kissed the top of my head before leave the room closing the door softly behind him.

I took a deep breath feeling a little lighter, as a heavy weight lifted up from my shoulders. I stand up and headed to my bathroom. I took a quick shower, changed my clothes to my pajamas and placing myself under the bed covers.

"Don't worry Yusei" I whispered closing my eyes "I will follow your advice again; I won't give up and I promise to you, I will do anything in my power to help you" and with this promise I fall into a deep dreamless sleep.

* * *

_Poor Aki! I can't imagine how terrible could it be for her to hear those awful news. But once again Yusei helped her and now she is ready to return it. I think she deserved a whole chapter dedicated to her feelings, what do you thing? Liked it? Hated it?_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; _I will accept all your comments, good and bad...


	4. Back home

**Chapter 4 – Back home**

Crow's Pov

"_A week_?" I questioned myself "Is this possible?"

I felt like it was yesterday when Rua called me from London. To be honest I was really glad when I saw his name on my phone. I thought he was calling to congratulate me and my teammates for our victory. We were outside in a club celebrating and allowing ourselves to relax from the hard practice and the whole duel stress and stuff.

With the entire club's noise I was lucky to hear my phone ringing and when I saw who was calling on the screen I run outside and answered feeling my happiness almost complete. But this joy vanished the same moment I heard his voice; when I heard the most frustrating news I ever heard in my whole life.

From that day until now I don't remember a lot. It's like I skipped this week, like the time speed up and everything in that week become a bluer memory. But I still remember some things, like this feeling of loss, the pain in my heart and that strange thing which made me think that nothing is more important to me than the people I love. My team's victory looked like something pointless when I heard Rua's words. After all what's a victory compared to a dear friend's life?

I received a call from Martha too; she didn't surprise when I told her I already knew about Yusei's condition from Rua. But speaking with her I felt ten times worst; she is my foster mother after all, she took care of me when I was little, I owe her so much and hearing her being hurt like this it was an awful part from the nightmare which I was already in; and the worst part, I wasn't able to make her feeling better. I speak with my little orphans the same day. They were asking about Yusei; if he is going to be ok, but how am I supposed to comfort them without lying?

As for Jack; no one fond him on the phone and he didn't answer any of our messages yet; not even Martha's. Most likely he doesn't check his phone or mails often, since the only think he has as the top of his list is to become the best Duelists ever in order to win Yusei one day.

Damn you Jack Atlas! Where the hell are you? Yusei needs you, we need you!

I'm completely furious with him; is his career more important than us? We are 'brothers' after all, we grow up together and as much friends as old teammates too. Why he never calls us and we must be the ones who searched for him? He doesn't care to find out what or how we are doing? He is the most selfish man I ever know. I left him some really firing message but I doubt if they would shaking him a little. Rua said he would keep trying to communicate with him as soon as possible. So I leave it on his shoulders.

The worst calls were with Aki. She was totally broken from Yusei's situation; every time I was speaking with her I was worrying more for her than Yusei. The only good news was that she went back to be with her parents quite fast and I know for sure that they will take care and comfort her. So I'm not worrying anymore about Aki. She is strong as well and I'm sure she will find the strength she needs. But when it comes to Yusei she is… acting weird; I mean she searched for the nearest flight paying a huge amount of money, but to be honest if I had the money I would do exactly the same. It's just her reaction the weird one; but I can't blame her. I am not unfamiliar with her feelings for him after all; or at least the suspected feelings.

Rua and Ruka had no problem to find tickets, their parents have a lot of money too and they made up with their studies as well; Rua was ok with his lessons and the principal of Ruka's collage agreed to let her leave from her lessons with only one condition. He gave her a change only because she is one of the top students in her collage. So when she will be able to go back she will have to give several tests and if she manages to pass all of them with good marks he will allow her to keep this year. I hope she will be ok with that but I will leave it to her words:

_"Don't worry about me Crow, I have it under control_"

As for my way back, well it wasn't that easy; luckily my teammates, when I announced them the terrible news agreed immediately that I had to leave as soon as possible for New Domino. They even found my replacement in no time, so I don't have to worry for stayed behind with their practice. The ticket was like a task. I couldn't find any flight, which I could afford in a short time; otherwise I had to wait more than three weeks. I spend hours searching with no progress but luckily one of my teammates found the perfect one. I have no idea how he can managed to get a ticket in such low price and only few days away, but he avoid telling me and since I got what I needed I didn't pressed him to spill out.

When we landed to Neo Domino city airport I hurry up and pick up my luggage as soon as possible and find the responsible man for my D-Wheel transfer. I signed every paper he gave me and started immediately directed to Martha's house. I wasn't waiting anyone to pick me up so I wasn't surprised because no one shows up in the airport. They are waiting me there after all; we agreed to meet them there.

When I arrived and parked my duel runner immediately heard noise. I didn't manage to erase the engine when the voices grew stronger and I looked toward the house taking off my helmet.

"Crow!"

"Big bro Crow!"

"Crow is here"

A huge smile appeared on my face as five children ran towards me cheering constantly. Taiga, Kokoro, Ginga, Daichi and Hikari run to my direction and jump into my arms smiling and laughing. I sit on one of my knees trying to hug all of them in the same time.

"Big bro Crow, we missed you" my little Kokoro yelled in my ear.

"And I missed all of you too. Let me see you guys." I stand up giving them one closer look "Man you really grow up from my last visit" I notice studding on them.

There they were; five wonderful kids- actually teenagers, two girls and tree boys. I couldn't help but smile feeling my heart growing up with pride; a little bit more and it would explode. I felt my eyes tearing, with tears of happiness, but I tried to hold them back. Those kids were part of my family. It's hard to see them growing but in my eyes they always be my 'little orphans'. After a moment, which seem like hours to me I change my expression as I become more serious.

"I hope you guys acting well. You don't cause trouble to Martha right?" I asked strictly trying to hold back a smile.

"No, no trouble at all" Hikari announced cheerfully.

Kokoro nodded her head in agreement.

"You are not lying aren't you? Because you all know what happens to kinds when they are lying?"

"No lies" Hikari confirmed.

"Martha said we are the most obedient children which have ever raised" Daichi smirked "unlike you and your friends who according to her words were the most naughty ones" he added and all the kids laugh loudly.

I raise my eyebrows blushing a little "that was years ago; she still says that?" I sighed scratching the back of my head a little embarrassed.

"And we are not kids anymore Crow" Ginga complained from my previous description, crossing his arms.

His reaction cause me laugh "You are not eighteen yet so you are still a kid" I can tell form his reaction that he doesn't like it.

"I'm fifteen, I'm a teenage" he argued.

I open my mouth to disagree with him, but he had a point; they weren't kids anymore "still you must never lie"

"You can ask Martha" Taiga suggested.

"I don't have to" I chuckled "I believe you guys" and opened my arms again as Kokoro jump on me placing her arms around my neck and luck them tightly.

"Crow" I heard several voices calling me happily and I turned to their directions with Kokoro still in my arms.

This time I saw two elder children running to greeting me and I blinked in surprise.

"Rua? Ruka? Is that you?" I gasp bowing to place Kokoro to her feet.

"Who did you expect you idiot" Rua laughed giving me a slight tap on my shoulder "You look good" he comment raising his hand in a high five.

"Thanks man, you too" I smirked hitting his hand in the air.

Rua was wearing a blue trousers and jacket which were looking like a turbo duel suits. He has the same haircut but his hair was longer and almost in the same height as mine.

"Is there anyone else who look like us, Crow?" Ruka chuckled and I couldn't help but blinked when I took a closer look at her.

In all those years Ruka transformed herself into an extremely beautiful young lady. She loses her pigtails and now her long hair was falling softly on her shoulders. She was wearing a long pink shirt with red belt paired with white short shorts.

"Definitely not" I muttered flatly with my gaze still focus on her.

The kids around me started to giggle and I realized that I was staring at her. I blush immediately and hurry up to turn my gaze on Aki, which just appeared behind her.

She was just like as I remembered her, only older and more woman than girl. She was smiling but I could see the pain written all over her face.

"Nice to see Crow" she said softly giving me a quick hug.

"Nice to see you too Aki. You made me worrying on the phone the last few days"

"I know" she mused "and I'm sorry. I'm better now" and gave me a warm smile.

"That's good" I grinned in relieve. I was right; her parents did great job.

"Crow! Finally you are here" a sweet and gentle voice took me off my thoughts and I turned to the owner feeling a smile forming on my face. It was always pleasure seeing my foster mother running up to me and welcome me back home; because no matter what this was and always will be my home.

Martha opened her arms to give me a big hug as she always did with the four of us. Jack used to resent and always trying to avoid it, but it never bothered me. So I returned the warm welcoming with the same enthusiasm.

"You look a little thinner you know that?" she stared immediately the comments the same time she let me escape from her grip and placing her hands on both sides of her hips, examining me "you don't eat?" she asked strictly.

"I eat a lot, but you know… lots of training… no time" I laughed.

"Ok, ok" she cut me off and waved her hand in the air "Let's go inside, I will prepare some snacks and drinks for everyone" and with a quick turn she headed to the house.

I smiled as my eye followed her. I took a deep breath. Sure she was worrying about Yusei, but she was as caring mother as always and I felt great relief seeing her smile in her usual self again. Sure she was feeling better with all of us with her.

"It's better to follow her orders" Aki gave me a meaning look.

"Yeah you are right" I agreed and turned to the kinds "alright guys, let's go inside, otherwise we will be in trouble. No one wants to mess around with Martha" I chuckled and took Kokoro hands on mime as we all marched to the front door.

"Nice to see you again Crow. How is your relationship with your teammates?" I heard a calm voice from my right the same time I stepped into the house.

I turned to see Saiga standing over the stairs. I flashed a smile. "Same here; and we are doing pretty well. I supposed you heard for our last victory?"

"Yes I'm familiar to this news. So I must give you my congratulations. You did an excellent work as a team"

"You were brilliant Crow" Rua agreed, "I watch every single detail. You had a pretty hard time but as usual you saved the day in the end; that trick with the trap card? It was awesome" and flashed a huge smile.

"Thanks man" I smiled to him and turned to Saiga again "So you are still leave here aren't you?"

"Here is what I call home" Saiga moved his hand in the air pointing around the room "with Martha and the kinds; finally and I found myself a real family"

"Isn't it wonderful!?" Aki grinned looking at me before she turned to Saiga "I am very happy for you. It's very important to have a family"

I knew exactly what she was talking about. After all I was alone too in my life; an orphan without anyone to care or love me. That was one my reasons that I took care of the orphan's kinds in Satellite at first place.

"Mr. Saiga shows us how to use a data base" Daichi announce with pride.

"Really?" I asked looking at him.

"Yeah and he is very good teacher" Hikari smiled, pointing on him.

"And now we can search and find any information we want"

"Is that so…?" I raise an eyebrow. He had a real talent with computers and software but I wasn't sure if I liked that news, knowing his past too.

"Without breaking codes of course" we heard Martha's voice from the kitchen as she explained and the kids nod their heads in agreement making me breathe out in relief.

"Wow, can you teach me how to break codes?" Rua asked Saiga and he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Rua! This is illegal" Ruka yelled to her brother.

"Ok, ok!" he said quickly and raised his hands in surrender "I won't speak again" he said in defense tone but everyone laugh with his reaction.

"Like there is any chance to keep your mouth shut" Ruka muttered and Rua glared at her good-naturedly, as she gave him a teasing look.

"She had a point you now" Aki comment holding a laugh as Martha entered the room holding a big plate with some cookies snack and some sandwiches and placing it in the middle of the table and sat in an empty seat.

"So" I started before she had a change and tell me again to eat "Any sign of Jack yet?" I asked and everyone's expression changed immediately. Feeling that I knew their answers already I started getting angry.

"No" Ruka shock her head with a hint of disappointment in her voice "still missing"

"We tried to call him more than a million times with no success" Rua explain picking some cookies.

"I'm sure he will show himself soon" Martha stared, enable to convince anyone; at least from the elder's ones.

"I swear I will never understand this guy" I shouted feeling my blood pressure growing.

"No one will" Aki sighed softly "But we can't help it; this is how jack is. The only thing we can do is waiting for him to call us back. Anything else it's just pointless"

I glared at her angrily "Is his career more important than us?" I shoot the question with passion hitting my hand in the air.

I heard several gasps behind me; the kinds weren't used to see me angry any more. But I was wondering myself the same question without clue of any answer. Maybe one of them know better, but I doubted.

"Um…" Aki started but she paused with eyes widen in shocked but I didn't pay attention. I was furious.

"When I see him I'm going to kill him…" I hit my hand on the table this time as I started losing control of my nerves.

"Um Crow…?" Rua cut me off.

"What?" I turned to him angrily "we were trying to find him for a whole week now…"

"Um you know Crow…" this time Ruka started but I ignore her.

"But no, he is completely lost from the planet earth. Where the hell is he?"

"Right behind you" suddenly I heard a familiar and calm voice that made me froze.

I turned myself slowly and let my jaw drop. There he was; a tall man with blond hair and purple eyes dressed in white and blue. Right behind him was standing a familiar young woman with black hair and big glasses in her eyes.

"Jack?" I wondered absolutely astonished unable to believe in my eyes "How…? Where…? I mean…" I mumbled speechless "what the hell are you doing here?"

Sure it wasn't the best question but I wasn't able to think of something from the surprise, which I was in.

* * *

_I intend to make this a looooong story with mystery, adventure, friendship, bonds, fantasy, agony… I already have plenty ideas. Unfortunately I don't have lots of free time, but I will try my best to update as soon as possible. Thanks all of you who like my story!_

_This chapter is less sad with the emotions part than the last one, right? And you find some information too, about Crow's match, Ruka's studies… and look! Many characters appeared: Crow's orphans, Martha, Saiga… and what do you think about the last visitors? Any guess about the girl behind Jack? And any idea what happen to Jack and appeared suddenly? You will find out in the next chapter ^_^_

_And I would like to ask your opinion on something; you want me to write about some romance too, or not?_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; _I will accept all your comments, good and bad...


	5. Reunion

**Chapter 5 – Reunion**

Jack's Pov

I will never forgive him if he dies in a way like this. He is my brother. I know we are not sharing the same blood but I feel like he is a real one to me. We shared the same room even the same bed some nights, when more orphans were coming to live with us under Martha's protections and we run out of beds. Growing I met my other 'brothers' Crow and Kiryu but Yusei is the one and only real brother I ever had; and I'm not going to abounded him ever again.

I did it once; I betrayed him, I steal his first duel runner and his favorite card and I abounded him with no regrets. Of course I regret it in the end; may I never told him this, I'm Jack Altas I never apologize to anyone, it's a part of my character, but I'm absolutely sure that he knows my feelings. After all he accepted me back again as one of his best friend; but that's Yusei. This is a part of his character, he is caring and loyal as I never be or will be in my whole life.

It hurts me when I'm thinking of him almost dead in a hospital's bed. Unable to move, stand up to his feet or duel. Why Yusei? For Ra sake of all people in the world why he had to suffer a fate like this? I'm ten times worst than him; he deserves something better and still has a lot to live.

Damn Yusei, don't you dare giving up now; I will never forgive you if you die in a place like this. Or before you have the change to live your life. After all you and I still have open business together.

Only Carly manage to saw the soft side of my character, which I hide quite well. Everyone else think of me as a proud and selfish man, hard as stone and cold like ice; ready to do anything, crash everyone and everything in my way to my will; an apathetic man who thinks only himself. That's true more or less so I don't blame them for believing this for me.

I shook my head to clear up my thoughts and I took a look from my window the earth underneath before turning my attention to the laptop in front of me.

I stirred in my seat feeling cramped. This ride seems endless; I'm stick in here for how long? I can't count but many hours. At least I wasn't alone in this trip and I was more than lucky for this, because in the seat next to me was none other than Carly. She is really stubborn but always had a point.

She fell asleep two hours ago in her seat with her head on my shoulder. I didn't want to wake her up so I stayed in my seat, trying not moving a lot and since I didn't have something better to do I finally get the time to check my friends' messages; which weren't few. Aki was asking me where I was, Rua was keep telling to call him as soon as I saw his mails and Crow… well just say that Crow is not really pleased with me; actually he is pissed off and as much as I don't want to admit it he is absolutely right to be angry with me.

I rare check my messages and mails myself as I have more important thing to do, like practicing and dueling, so I hired a secretary for this job to replace Mikage.

Mikage was always good with her job; actually she did an excellent work with my schedule but the new one is not that good. To be honest I really miss Mikage as my secretary because all the others I hired can't match her; not even a little. So she never inform me about my friends calls; maybe it's my fault, because I made it clear when I told her that when I'm practicing I want no one, I mean no one, bothering me.

Of course she doesn't know about my old friends and the fact that they are the one and only exception so I can say she made a mistake. Everyone can make a mistake. So I will fire her later; because now I definitely have more important things to keep my mind busy.

Carly stirred in her sleep and I turned my eyes on her. The fact that I was here now and I was flying for Neo Domino I owe to her. Actually not only to her but still; she was the one who found me and inform me about everything. She was traveling into the Pro league to make articles about her job as reporter and of course she came to my duels, since I'm the best out there.

I clearly remember the day she came to me; out for nowhere I must say. I had just won an important duel and I was surrounded by reporters and thousands cameras' flashes when she appeared before me. This startled me and for a moment I wanted to pulses her in my arms. I haven't seen her for years and almost forgot my feelings for her, but her expression kept me away the last minute. She didn't seem with the Carly I knew; the joyful and carefree Carly that would ran after me to catch a picture of me and take an interview. Instead, she was serious almost frightened and the first thing she asked me was if I knew what had happened to Yusei.

I felt confused and she explained to me that she had just learned the terrible news and she was based on me for more information. After the first shock I left from the stage immediately without giving the slightest attention around me, dragging Carly with me. She told me everything she knew about Yusei, which weren't much, but she informed me that from what she heard the twins and Aki were already back to Neo Domino and Crow would be there soon; so I act fast. I knew what I had to do and how to do it.

One of the advantages of being Jack Atlas is that I have some more privileges than the others. With a little help for an old friend (actually huge help since this friend arranged everything) and some of Carly's also, I got all the information, which I needed; like what day and hour Crow's flight is. Since Carly insisted to accompany me in the way back to Neo Domino, my friend found us two seats, in the faster flight, so I was able to arrive pretty much the same time as Crow and I booked ours tickets, Carly's and mine, for a straight flight to Neo Domino in zero time. After three hours we both were in the plane. I sighed in relief; I will manage to get there in time.

I felt Carly stirring in her seat waking "Are we there yet?" she yawned rubbing her eyes trying to chase the remained sleep away.

"In few minutes we will" I answered her looking from my window.

"Did you have any success on searching?" she asked in wonder.

I perfectly knew of what she was talking about. She spends hours and hours in the internet trying to gather every single detail about Yusei and his new situation when she falling asleep from tiredness. In fact I told her to take a break and let me continue searching in her place. But I had the same progress as Carly's.

"No, nothing at all" I informed her a bit angry.

"Are you ok Jack?" she asked in concern this time "I mean… Yusei is your best friend and we still don't know anything about his condition"

"Don't worry about me" I told her flatly "We will be there soon and we will find out what's going on"

"Are you sure?" there was something strange in the tone of her voice but I didn't pay attention.

"Of course I am" what the hell she was thinking?

"You know I was wondering about that" she muttered placing one finger to her chin and one more to her cheek.

"About what?" I hated when I had to ask to tell me more.

"You know, we search for every article dedicated on his condition and we have found nothing to explain why he felt into a coma yet"

"What is your point?" I knitted my eyebrows in confused.

She stared at me with this you-know-what-I-mean look "Well if they knew then I'm sure it would be in the front page. Don't you think?"

"Hmm" I mused turning my gaze on the laptop's screen again.

"Think about it Jack" she insisted with passion "Yusei is quite famous, not as much as you do…"

I couldn't help but smile hearing her words. It wasn't a complement since she was right but I knew exactly why Yusei wasn't as famous as I am; simply he didn't want it.

"…but there are several reporters out there, writing about him and his life. They are still searching about his past and his new life. The fact he is in a coma for a week and no one write down why, doesn't make you wonder?"

I stayed silence for a moment crossing my arms. I had to admit, I never thought of that and the more I was thinking of it the more I realize that Carly had a point. But let's not rush to congratulate her; it was easy for her to think all the possible options with the articles since this is a part of her job.

"So…" I started slowly putting my thoughts in a line "you are saying there is a change the doctors don't know why Yusei is in a coma?" I finally asked. I didn't like that turn.

"Exactly!" she declared.

"Maybe the doctors just keep it quiet…" I stared but I wasn't able to continue as the gentle female voice form the airplane's loudspeaker informed us that soon we will arrive at the Neo Domino airport.

"But this is a small chance you know. The reporters has their own ways to learn what they want" she answered my unfinished sentence smiling "and trust me when I say that because I'm a reporter too" and pointed herself with a goofy grin on her face.

I roll my eyes falling deep into my thoughts and Carly's words again.

When we landed at the airport Carly went to pick up our luggage and found a taxi to transfer her at Martha's while I was arranged my duel runner's stuff. I helped her with the suitcases and finding a cab and I followed her all the way with my D-Wheel until the end of our destination.

When we arrived at Martha's house the first thing I notice was Crow's duel runner. So he was already there; for a moment I wonder what reactions would have when I show up myself without warning. Since I had no time to respond on their mails and messages throw our way back home, I didn't had the chance to informed them that I was coming too. I shocked my head parking my D-Wheel beside Crow's and went close to Carly. I paid for the taxi, before she manage to open her peruse.

"You don't have to…" she began but I cut her off.

"Don't' be silly" I told her off gently moving my hand; she paid many of my coffees in the past.

I carried our luggage inside with Carly following me. I felt my heart beating faster in wonder what I would have to face inside; definitely it wasn't my old friends which making me nervous but the slight of fear of what I was about to learn for Yusei; Carly's words where still on my thoughts making me worrying more.

It was always pleasure as a bit painful visiting this place again. So many memories of my life… me, Martha, Yusei…

Carly remained salience and I couldn't help but think again that she is one of the few people who can understand me so well. I heard angry voices from inside as I approached and let a smirk appeared on my face before I opened the door and walk inside.

"When I see him I'm going to kill him…" and I saw his back, as he was hitting his hand on the table. I knew immediately whom he meant.

Same old Crow; it's hard to understand him sometimes but I know at least that he has good intentions. But I would like to see him trying to kill me; that would be very amusing.

Everyone in the room notices my appearance and gasp with wide eyes except Crow, which was still furious lost in his own anger "…Where the hell is he?"

"Right behind you" I informed him trying to hold back a smile as he froze and turned slowly to face me with wide eyes and open mouth.

"Jack?" he shouted in chock "How…? Where…? I mean…" he mumbled like an idiot.

It's so hard to believe in his eyes?

"What the hell are you doing here?" he finally asked and I raise one eyebrow trying hard from punch him in his marker face for his sully question.

"Are you bloody idiot Crow?" I asked him crossing my arms, but I didn't gave him time to replay as he was standing there with an open mouth from surprise "You know don't answer, I already know. And what do you mean what am I doing here? I came for Yusei of course"

"Jack!" Martha yelled and run over to give me one big welcome. I pursed my lips when she put me in a tight hug feeling a little uncomfortable "It's so good to see you so soon. You made me worry you know"

"It wasn't in my intentions" I defense myself.

"I know, I know, you are such a good boy to make me worrying with no reason" she smile and I blush. Yeah sometimes even that can happen.

"Where were you Jack?" Aki asked me in confused and she wasn't the only one; no one waiting for me after all.

"We tried to call you many times" Ruka said.

"It's true" her brother affirmed, "I was calling you every day. But you never answered. Not to mentions the messages"

"I saw all of them while I was in the plain form Carly's laptop" I informed them turning my head a little to peek on Carly's direction.

She nodded in agreement smiling ready to greet everyone with more will than me.

"Long time to see you guys" she smirked.

"Nice to see you Jack" Aki approached smiling on me and to gave Carly a hug "and you too Carly, did you came all along with Jack?"

"Yes" she giggled and I rolled my eyes.

"I feared that you wouldn't come at all" Aki explained.

"That was something unexpected" Ruka smiled "but no doubt nothing less for the Jack Atlas"

"Hmm. Jack Atlas is always in time" I affirmed her words

"Man good to see you again" Rua shouted happily.

Everyone greeting me except Crow who gave me a look full of fire; parentally he completely recovered from the shock.

"I'm sick of this Jack" he stared pick on me "what is wrong with you man? I swear I will never understand what's on your stupid head of yours. Is there space for your old friends?"

Crow was doing his best to give me a hell but I wasn't in a mood to let him yelled at me like that.

"l am just arrived Crow just like you did" I cut him off raising my voice a little "so keep your mouth shut from the what-kind-of-a-friend-are-you and you-should-check-your-messages speeches" I glared at him "and of course there is a space for my friends, otherwise I wasn't here now?"

He gave me one his death glared look opening his mouth ready to disagree again when Martha get in our way "Calm down Crow" she suggested "Jack is here with us now and I'm sure he will have a good reason for not answering in our calls"

Her words found immediate response.

"Alright; I will give him a rest for now" Crow shrugged giving up with his anger as he turned on me "And good to see you after all those years dude" and dare a small smile.

Same old Crow "Hmm" I hummed crossing my hands in my chest "some things will never change right? So Marta can still boss around I see"

"And I hope you really have a good reason Jack Atlas from the disappearance of yours all this time" Martha turned on me strictly making me to stepped back a little.

"Yeah" Crow agreed with my words with a huge smile on his face "some things never change" and everyone in the room burst into laughs.

* * *

_Ok guys, all the well health members of the old 5D's team are together! I thought it would be a good idea to give you some taste of each one's view._

_So no one wrοte why Yusei fell into a coma, any idea why, or you think Carly is right and Oh! Carly showed up! And do you have any guesses about the friend who helped Jack? You have to wait for my next chapters because from now on things are going to be more interesting ^_^ I promise!_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	6. The story

**Chapter 6 – The story**

Aki's Pov

After all the love and fire we finally manage to greet each other and place ourselves on the table. I look at my friends and my hart bounced in my chest. Only one of my friends weren't there; the most dear and beloved friend of mine. If he was among us right now then my happiness would be totally complete. But still as my friends surrounded me I was feeling stronger than ever; ready to fight with everything I got.

"That was really one funny reunion I must say" I admitted and everyone in the room laughed again.

"Sure Aki" Rua agreed and picked more cookies.

"Well Jack" Crow turned to his childhood friend.

Jack gave him a look waiting for him to continue.

"Don't you think it's about time to tell us where were you all those days?" Crow hurried to ask.

"I was practicing of course" Jack replied as it's been the most obvious thing in the world "and I wasn't thinking of anything else. If you haven't notice I gave one very important duel yesterday; which of course I won" he added with pride.

"Yeah" Rua affirmed, "I saw your match Jack. You were super cool"

"Hmm, the day which Jack Atlas won't be super cool haven't arrived yet" he commented.

"I'm very proud of you Jack" Martha announced, "I watch some of your duels too. But you know you are a very bad influence for the kids sometimes" she explain smiling.

"It was an interesting duel" I mused "he gave you hard time sometimes but you crashed him in the end. Very clever combo of yours"

"Of course I was"

"Nothing less from Jack Atlas. I'm working on this article already" Carly announced with passion "Em Crow" she started and he turned to her direction "Congratulations for your team victory too. I saw your match"

"Oh yeah" he smirked scratching the back of his head "Um thanks a lot Carly"

"You did have tough time back there. Would you mind if I take an interview from you later?" she asked full of excitement "you know I can cover some of your work"

Crow raised his eyebrows in surprise "Sure thing" he smiled blushing a little "you can asked me everything you want to know about our duel"

"What a scoop!" Carly cheered up happily "I can't wait starting it too"

"Hey Carly?" Rua began and everyone looked at him in confused. What Rua would possible want from her? Even Carly looked at him in wonder "Can you write an article about me too?" he suggested, "you know that I'm taking lessons to be a turbo duelist too. One day I will be as famous as jack" he added with pride.

"Hmm" Jack grunted loudly "I doubt that" he disagreed flatly crossing his arms and giving Rua a don't-be-ridiculous glare.

But Rua didn't cowed and he smiled wide "You will see, one day I will be as good as you"

Jack roll his eyes while Ruka placed one hand on her brother's shoulder "You have a long way ahead of you Rua, but I'm sure you will be one of the best someday"

"It will be pleasure to write about your first steps into the Turbo duel world" Carly announce and Rua flashed a huge smile satisfied with himself "I guess I will have to hurry and start my articles soon, since I got a lot of work already" and saying this she got up to pick her laptop.

I smiled looking around my friends. Everything was look so normal and calm. Like the time stoped six years ago and we traveled back in time. I haven't been with my dear friends all this years and only now I realize how much I missed them. All of the, every single person in this room; the sweet Ruka, the caring Martha, the obsessed with Jack Carly, the crazy Crow, the over happy Rua, even the cold apathetic Jack. If only Yusei was here too.

"It's been six years already" Ruka muttered and I blinked. She read my thoughts or we transmitted at the same frequencies?

"What's the matter Ruka?" her brother asking her with sympathy.

"If only Yusei was here" Ruka whispered looking down at her plate and everyone in the room holds their breath.

That was a sensitive theme to speak of but she was right. I wish he was with us, with me. There was a slight pause while everyone thinking Ruka's words until Crow broke the silence.

"Well" he started "can anyone tell us what's going on?" he asked as he, Jack and Carly turned their gazes on me, Rua, Ruka and Martha awaiting some explanation. Logical reaction I must say, since they just arrived.

"Yes" Carly agreed "me and Jack spent hour searching but we didn't find anything, except the fact which is already know to everyone: Yusei is in a coma. Nothing more"

"Actually nothing is more important than this but we must find at least why" Jack continued.

"To be able to help him; so tell us everything you know" Crow asked politely.

I hesitated a little "You see…" I stared biting my lips and knitted my fingers together. It was harder than I thought, "things are more complicated than we believed"

"Complicated?" Carly gasped and I sense Jack and Crow holding their breaths.

I opened my mouth again but my voice stucked on the back of my throat as I remembered doctor's words. I felt a slight of pain in my heart and turned to Martha for some help. Rua and Ruka exchanged a meaning look before they turned to Martha too. Soon everyone in the room was looking at her.

She took a deep breath as she opened her mouth to share what she knew and what we learned the previous days.

"I think it's better if I explain you guys from the beginning." she said and turned to Saiga who was standing near the door all this time saying nothing "Could you please take the children to their rooms?" she asked him "it's getting late and it's almost time to bed"

"Sure thing" he said.

Once the kids hugged Crow and said goodnight to the rest of us, Saiga followed them to the second floor.

"This will be a long conversation and it's better if we are alone" Martha explained.

Jack and Crow nodded their heads in agreement as Carly opened her laptop preparing herself to write everything.

"All began fifteen days ago" Martha started the narration the same time Carly started typing "Yusei was busy as always with his work in the lab; fixing engines and practicing with turbo duels"

"That's Yusei's life for six years now" Jack commented.

"I agree Jack but it was the first time in all those years which I noticed something different on him" Marta informed.

"What was it?" Carly asked with her eyes still on the screen.

"It's difficult to describe it" Martha confessed and my heart falls as I was hearing this story again.

"Well…?" Crow looked at her as his foster mother paused looking down.

"He seemed really tired and very pressed. He didn't get enough sleep and had black circles in his eyes. Sometimes he looked like he was a bit off…"

"Off?" Crow repeated her word "what you mean off?"

"Like he was started losing his contact with everything; like his mind was somewhere else and I don't mean he fall into deep thoughts"

Everyone's gaze, even Carly's turned on Ruka and I knew why. The youngest girl stayed silence and Martha continued "anyway, I started worrying about him, so I told him to take a day off before he crashed from tiredness and be able to get some rest and sleep which he clearly needed"

"Let me guess" Jack cut her "he told you not to worry"

"He did" she affirmed and Jack moved his head.

"That's sounds like him" Crow sighed.

"He said he will be ok and mentioned something about a new experiment…"

'Here comes the interesting part' I thought looking my friend's reactions. Crow raised his eyebrows and Jack crossed his arms

"Which was…?" he asked coldly.

"He didn't tell me" Martha ended up and everyone sighed in disappointing.

"Too bad" Carly comment; her fingers were on fire "did at least told you why he didn't want to tell you about this new experiment?"

"No" Martha replied and Carly turned her gaze to her laptop again "and I didn't ask him. He said it was something important as he was investigating something strange which he just discovered"

"That's really interesting information, but since he didn't tell you anything else we can only guess" Jack mused putting one finger to his cheek and one more to his chin.

"Unfortunately yes" Martha agreed with the blond duelist "but he told me this" she announce and Jack raised his head as Crow looked at her waiting to hear the rest "he said something about bonds"

"Bonds?" Jack questioned himself.

"What bonds? And between which things?" Crow asked immediately.

"I don't know" Martha shrugged.

"We wondered the same when Martha told us but still we have no clue" Rua informed and I nod in agreement

Martha cleared her throat before she continued with the story "Anyway, he refused to take a day off but he promised he would get more sleep but although he did rest more nothing change. He was getting worst day by day"

"What the hell was on his mind?" Crow shouted hitting his hand on the table.

"I forced him to take some days off and I suggested him to stay with me so I can keep an eye on him. He repeated again that he was ok and everything is fine…"

"Typical Yusei; he is still stupid as usual" Crow whispered.

"…but he did what I told him"

"I can see Martha can still boss all of you Jack" Carly giggle and raised her head looking the blond duelist with warm.

Jack grunting and Crow left and embarrassment laugh scratching the back of his head "I supposed you are right Carly" he smirked.

"Did that helped Yusei?" Jack asked quickly probably to escape from Carly's teasing comments.

"Unfortunately not" Martha sighed "but at least he didn't get worst, so I thought I was doing the right thing. Until…" she paused with a dark shadow in her face.

Everyone in the room hold their breath, even me although it wasn't the first hearing the story and for a moment I didn't want to heard the rest.

"Someone challenged him in a duel, not a turbo one, otherwise I wouldn't let him"

"So… something happened in that duel?" Jack mused.

"Something must happend" Martha corrected him "that was one day before he fall into a coma. At the beginning everything was ok, absolutely normal. It was a duel like all the others. But then; I don't know, something was wrong…"

"Can you be more specific?" Carly asked.

"Something wasn't right with the monster's holograms" Martha explained "we thought there must be a problem with their duel disks and keep going with their duel. Until Yusei was ready to do a Synchro summon…"

"And I bet I already know which monster was ready to summon" Jack said.

"Stardust Dragon" Crow guessed, "right?"

"Right" Martha affirmed "but he failed"

"He did what?" both Jack and Crow asked with eyes winded in shock.

"The Synchro summon didn't work for him" Marta repeated again raising her voice a little "Stardust Dragon appeared but he look like he was ill or something and didn't attack when Yusei ordered. He looked weak"

"How is this possible?" Carly lifted her head "I mean is this even possible to happen?" she asked turning her eyes on Jack.

"I don't know" he answered and Carly turned her attention to the screen again disappointed.

"What happen with the duel?" Crow asked.

"I notice when Stardust Dragon appeared Yusei was a little pale and…" Martha's voice cracked.

It must be really painful for her repeating the same story again making her drama bigger. She was already suffering enough. I placed one hand on her shoulder trying to comfort her a little.

"Martha told us Yusei stumbled a little" I continued the story letting Martha to take a break "clearly he wasn't feeling well because immediately he placed his hand on his forehead trying to keep his balance but without success" only now I realized how hard it was for Yusei's foster mother. My heart was beating fast and the only thing I wanted was to close my eyes and when I open them again I would be able to see Yusei sitting and laughing with us; awake and healthy.

Martha took my hand on hers nodding in understanding "Yusei fainted" she whispered "he fall into the ground with his eyes closed"

"Fainted?" Crow mumbled.

Martha nodded "The same time Yusei black out Stardust Dragon vanish and the duel cut immediately. I run close to him trying to wake him up but I couldn't. He was pale as ghost still holding Stardust's card"

"What happened next" Jack demanded to know as his patience started to abandon him.

"Saiga helped me to carry Yusei inside and he recover three hour later"

"Three hours to recover from a simple faint?" Jack mused, "that's odd"

"Actually" Ruka hesitated a little before she add, "we believe it wasn't just a simple faint"

"You guys mean that something else happened back there?"

"Exactly" Rua shouted and Jack pursed his lips.

"It took him three hours. But when he opened his eyes he said he needed to go to the lab and check on something" Marta continued.

"Check on what in his condition?" Crow wondered, "it must be something very important"

Martha nodded "I believed the same too back then, so I didn't stop him but when he tried to get up and stand on his feet he almost fainted again"

"That's interesting. Whatever happened to him must be really strange" Carly waved her head in confusion "he didn't say anything else; like what he needed to check in the lab?"

"No" Martha said "and I was focused on Yusei's health more to think anything else. So he sat on the bed again saying he is ok or he would be, but he needed to go to his lab as soon as possible. But he couldn't even stand to his feet!"

"So, this is how he fell into a coma?" Jack asked but I can tell he knew the answer already.

Martha nodded "The next day" she whispered "he woke up in the morning but he looked like he didn't sleep at all and he was also very weak and when he tried to stand up he fell into his knees. This time I manage to get there in time and caught him before he fall completely into the ground and…" her voice became a whisper "I hear him saying something before he passed out"

Jack and Crow gasp and I was able to sense theirs silent agony. I felt tears in my eyes and I did my best to hold them back; it's been too painful.

"What did he said?" Jack throws the question calmly but it was clear he was worrying for his friend, which even stopped breathing.

My breath cut too as we stayed in an tense silence; nobody moved an eyelash holding their breaths and the only sound in the room were Carly's fingertips as she was typing like crazy trying to caught every single detail about Yusei.

Martha took a deep breath before she opened her mouth again "He said…"

* * *

_What Yusei said? OH! I must be really mean for letting you people wonder but this chapter was already big enough. So I gave something to think of and you can make some guesses until the next chapter! Please don't fire on me! At least I gave you lots of information don't you think huh?_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	7. Confusion

**Chapter 7 – Confusion**

Crow's Pov

Everyone's gazes were on Martha waiting to reveal Yusei's last words before he fainted and never wake up. My heart was beating like crazy knowing I wasn't going to like the rest.

Martha took a deep breath before she opened her mouth again "He said…" she paused a little "I'm sorry… Stardust"

I was breathless from shock "I'm sorry Stardust?" I repeated her words trying to absorb them; I never saw that coming "He asked sorry from his card?" I wondered totally confused "That's just too…"

"Weird" Jack cut me off finishing my thought "is he… I mean" he tried to find some appropriate words "maybe he wasn't on his right mind" he ended up and I felt a pinch in my heart.

"Maybe Jack is right?" I dared to say but the same time I wanted to punch my mouth and keeping it shut as I saw Martha's reaction.

"Most likely but I doubt it" she replied flatly "I saw his face, his eyes… he was completely knowing of what was happening to him. He tried hard to stand up; he wanted to go on his lab, he wanted to do something about it but he didn't had the chance"

"What is that supposed to mean?" I wondered out loud "he knew what was happening to him? Then why he waited for the last minute to do something?"

The twins looked each other with a meaning look and Martha waved her head.

"We don't know Crow" it was Aki who gave me an answer even if it wasn't the one I wanted.

"We can only guess" Rua said and Jack hit his hand on the table making Carly to jump up.

"Jack?" she shouted in surprise.

He ignored her and turned to his foster mother again "that's all?" he asked.

Martha nodded "unfortunately yes" she sighed, "not a big help I must say"

"There must be something else" Jack muttered.

"At least is better than nothing" I said "we have something to think of"

"Something?" Aki gave me a confused look "we have a huge number of questions, possible scenarios and hypothesis with no answer; not even one"

"We will put all the evidence down and we will find something" I defended myself.

Aki rolled her eyes.

"This is the problem Crow" Ruka hurried to tell me "as we were waiting for you to came back we have done nothing more than thinking; everything Martha told us and doctors words but we still don't have the tinniest clue from where to begin"

"It's odd since all our evidence seems to match with each other in a way but completely unpaired the same time" Rua mused.

"Well, let's see what we got" Jack started counting with his finger "first, Yusei wasn't well…"

"He looked really tired although he did get rest" Martha said in hurry.

"… Second, he mentioned a new experiment…"

"And said nothing about it" Carly commented disappointing.

"… Third, he was acting weird since he got a day off but didn't get better…"

"We believe there was something else which making him weak" Aki added.

"… Fourth, his duel disk was broken or something…"

"We don't know for sure if it was broken but the holograms had definitely problem" Martha affirmed.

"… Fifthly, his Synchro summons failed…"

"I didn't even know something like that could happen" Carly muttered.

"… Sixth, Stardust Dragon didn't follow his orders to attack which is really odd not to mention that Martha said he was looking weak as he was ill…"

"Something really weird" Ruka mused, "since it's just a hologram"

"… Seventh, Yusei fainted…"

"Something even weirder" Rua pointed, "since it's Yusei we are talking about"

"…Eighth, it took him _three hours_ to recover…"

"Like he didn't just fainted but maybe something worst" Aki explained.

"…Ninth, when he did, he was so weak which he barely stand on his feet…"

"Correct" Martha agreed.

"… Tenth, he said he needed to go to the lab and check on something…"

"Correct again" Martha repeated.

"… Eleventh, he said he is ok…"

"Typical Yusei" I commented "he still don't want to make us worry"

"… Twelfth, he said he would be ok…"

"But he didn't" Ruca muttered.

"… Thirteenth, in order to be ok he needed to go to his lab as soon as possible…"

"And he still didn't say why" Carly stated again.

"… Fourteenth, which clearly this had something to do with his blackout …"

"We believe the same" Aki agreed.

"… Fifteenth, although he really wanted to go to his lab he was too weak to do it…"

"Indeed" Martha said.

"… Sixteenth, he stayed on bed and when he felt better he tried to get up and lost his balance and fell…"

"That was exactly what had happen" Ruka grinned sadly.

"… Seventeenth, after his faint this time I believe you took him to the hospital since he didn't recover…"

"You are right again" Martha whispered.

"… Eighteenth, the doctors said he is in a coma and they don't know why…"

"They don't know for sure yet" Ruka corrected him.

"… Nineteenth, but the chances to find out are few and getting less with every day passed…"

"We will go to hospital tomorrow and talk to the doctors again. Maybe they learn something all those days" Rua announced with a hint of hope in his voice.

"… Twentieth, as strange, odd and weird is this sound, before he blackout he said 'I'm sorry Stardust' right…?"

No one in the room opened his mouth this time to comment on Jack's words, or at least say something about it; anything. Carly gave Jack one didn't-I-tell-you look but he ignored her.

"… And…" Jack paused a little "I run out; I think I mentioned everything" he added looking to his fingers.

There was a slight pause while everyone was in deep thoughts before I break the silence.

"Well" I said in the end "that was a pretty good counting Jack"

"Anytime" he commented with a hint of sarcasm in his voice "I made the count, so I think it's your turn to say something Crow"

"I'm still thinking everything you said and I have no idea" I mused "but Rua have a point; all those really seems to commit with a way but I can't think of how Yusei's weakness can affect his duel and the fact that Stardust didn't follow his ordered attack"

"Or why Yusei said 'I'm sorry Stardust'" Rua added "I mean… this is so strange, he must thought or least guessed of something since he wanted to investigate it on his lab, but…" Rua shock his head unable to think more.

"Well I have a theory" Ruka started and everyone in room turned our gazes on her "maybe… something happened to Yusei which somehow affected Stardust Dragon or something happened to Stardust Dragon which somehow affected Yusei?" Ruka explained and I'm sure everyone in the room can guess why. She has a special gift after all.

"What do you mean?" Carly asked in hurry.

Almost everyone in the room; I forgot Carly.

"Stardust Dragon is Yusei's ace monster and loyal companion" Ruka explained.

"It's just a card" Carly complained looking around for some support.

"It's not a simple card Carly" Ruka continued, "Stardust Dragon was his Signer Dragon also. One of the five- and then six- fighters of the Crimson Dragon"

"But that was years ago" Carly declared again "None of you are a Signer anymore, right?" she looked around confused.

"Yes, we are not" Jack replayed to her.

"So if none of you are a Signer anymore then Stardust Dragon's card it's just a… card, right?"

"Not necessary" Aki muttered.

"The point is we are not sure about it. As I said it's only a theory I have" Ruka mused "After all Ancient Fairy came to me a week ago and informed me about Yusei" she whispered and Carly moved her head with wide eyes.

"Why I don't understand a thing?" she questioned herself but this time Jack stopped her placing a hand in front of her.

"What did you just said Ruka?" he asked in hurry.

"Ruka had a dream; actually it was more than a vision. That's the reason we found out about Yusei before Martha informed us" Rua replied for her and his twin nodded her head.

"Alright" Jack turned to the youngest girl "I want to hear everything about this dream-vision of yours"

Ruka took a deep breath before she explained what she saw back there and what her ace dragon said as he and Carly hearing her totally confused. I was already informed about her dream but still could making me wonder what Ancient Fairy want to tell us and what's the meaning of all this. My head was burning for all those strange information.

"Look, I don't really understand what's the thinking with your dragons but I can say this; it's a great scoop" and turned to her laptop as her fingers was on fire again.

"Well" Jack crossed his arms over his chest "does anyone have any idea?"

Ours silence was his best answer.

"I see" he muttered flatly "but she clearly said we are the only ones who can save him right?"

Ruka nodded in agreement

"But how are we going to save him since we had no idea what happen to him?" I wondered.

"Or what is already happening" Rua added "he ended up in coma under some really strange circumstances and the last thing he said was I'm sorry Stardust"

"And the reason of why I wonder, if somehow something happen to his dragon and Yusei tried to help him but he is being affected too" Ruka explained.

"Have you any idea how ridicules that's sounds?" Carly raised her eyes on Ruka "No one is going to believe you guys"

"We know" Aki gave Carly an understanding look "But it's all we have, this is all the evidence and we must find the answers"

"Since Ancient Fairy said we are the only ones who can" RuKa agreed.

"But we don't even know from where to begin" Rua said "his weakness, his new experiment, the battle with the hologram's problem or what caused his coma?"

"Whatever caused the coma I don't think it's something simple" Martha mused.

"Or why Stardust Dragon was looking ill and didn't replied to his master's orders for attack" Ruka continued.

"But maybe this is a result from the whole problematic battle" I tried to give an explanation "and his Synchro summon failed too"

"Perhaps" Aki agreed with me "but Yusei fainted for the first time after he called his dragon. So we thought…"

Now my head was on fire like Carly's fingers "What a mess" I shouted in the end giving it up stopping her from saying more "you know a little bit more and I think my mind will explode"

"I told you Crow" Aki smirked "it's not as simple as it looks like"

"I never thought it was simple, I just believe it was…"

"Less complicate" Ruka finished my thought.

"Exactly" I admitted.

"And Rua said that you guys planning to visit Yusei tomorrow and talk with the doctor, right?" Jack gave Rua a quick look.

"Yes" Martha affirmed, "we already visited him but we also planned for tomorrow so Crow, and now you and Carly, can see him"

"I think we all need some rest" Aki suggested "if we stayed here and continue this conversation then everyone's minds will explode, not only Crow's" and smirked a little.

"Hm" Jack grunting "Crow's maybe but not mine" he muttered.

I glared at him preparing myself for fire back but Martha cut me off.

"Alright then" She said and stands up "it's already late so let's go to bed and we will visit him tomorrow. I think it's better if all of you stay here for the night. I'm sure Ruka and Rua can use the smaller room at the end of the corridor…"

"Sure" Rua affirmed.

"No problem Martha, thank you" Ruka agreed with her brother.

"…Even you Carly, you can stay with us" and turned to the reporter girl "You can share the same room with Aki"

"That would be great Martha" Carly flashed a huge smile at her direction and Aki waved 'yes' "in that way I would have the time to get Crow's and Rua's interviews as well"

"You can start with me" Rua suggested happily pointing himself and Carly nodded her head as Rua took a seat near her.

"As for you two" Martha said to the blond duelist and myself "well, I'm sure you remember the way to your old room" she smiled and left the room leaving me and Jack exchanging a surprise look.

Noticing his eye I'm sure he was thinking the same as I do. It would be funny and odd to sleep at the same bedroom we sheared all those years ago with Yusei too, when we were little kids. But this time it would be only Jack and me and this feeling was weird.

We all said goodnight to each other and retired quietly to our rooms. Tomorrow it's going to be a long day since we will visit Yusei in hospital. I really want to see him but at the same time, I hope time could slow down a little, because I wasn't sure if I am ready to see him helpless in a hospital bed. But after all this confusion I wasn't able to think at all. I will find out tomorrow.

* * *

_I'm so glad you like my story! It means a lot to me and of course when I see your comments I have a good motivation to keep writing._

_Now you know what Yusei said! Did anyone of you expect it? And what is this mean? His friends are confused and don't know what to think or believe. How about you guys? Does anyone want to make a guess?_

_I'm not feeling well those days; I'm a little ill (its sucks! I hate it) plus my jobs and all the rest, so I don't know when I'm going to update again. Please don't get mad with me! I will try hard and update as soon as possible!_

_Well since I'm not in good health and in hurry too, I wasn't able to double check for mistakes… let's hope there are few (not lots) of them…_

_My thanks to: _**Chrome Nagi Dokuro**_, _**ItalyGirl58**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	8. The visit

**Chapter 8 – The visit**

Rua's Pov

Ok, I recall everything I said about me sleeping like a rock with nothing capable enough to wake me up because Ruka just did, with her screams. Although it took me plenty of time to realize she was screaming again. At the beginning I thought it was a part of my dream or rather says my nightmare because normal dreams definitely don't involved your twin sister's voices.

I blinked my eyes several times to protected them from the light which turned on suddenly only to see almost every person in the house in our room; Martha, Aki, Crow, Jack, Carly even Saiga and some of the kids were gathered around my sister's bed. Some of them still on their pajamas like Carly that was white with duel's monsters figures and Aki was wearing a red-pink nightgown. Others like Martha and Saiga were wearing robes above them and as for Jack and Crow, well their sleep's clothes had no different from a day's clothes; Jack was wearing a sleeveless black shirt with dark-blue pants and Crow wearing green pants with a long yellow t-shirt.

I shook my head to recover from my sleep faster and run to my sister putting my hands around her protective "Ruka are you ok? What happen?" I asked her immediately when I realized she was all wet from cold sweat.

She didn't answer and started shaking.

"Ruka…?" I muttered.

"We heard her screaming, is she ok?" Saiga asked.

Everyone turned theirs gazes on me and I felt heat all over my face. Man, what kind of brother I am? Every single person in the house heard her and run up and I was the last one who woke up; and I was sleeping in the same room. I shook my head in confuse "I… I don't know" but I hoped she was.

"What happen?" Crow was really worrying, but Ruka stayed silence breathing heavily.

"Ruka...?" Aki encouraged her to speak.

My sister shook her head "bad dream" she mumbled.

"Another vision?" Carly exclaimed in hurry "I'm going to take my notepad" and spin around to leave the room before Jack stopped her grabbing her from her arm.

"You are not going to write anything about it Carly" he ordered coldly.

She looked at him confused opening her mouth, probably to disagree but after a minuet she closed her mouth and nodded ready to do what he told her.

"Ruka?" Jack turned to my sister "you owe us an explanation. I think you forgot to mention something we must know"

Crow looked at him and then Ruka and then Jack again with wide eyes.

I felt Ruka shaking a little in my arms and as much as I admire and respect Jack Atlas I won't let him pressing my sister like that, so I turned to him ready to speak but Ruka cut me off.

"Um…" she muttered "I…" she tried to find a way to share what she was hiding "I'm sorry guys…" she said in the end.

I couldn't take it any more "Look" I said turning to the rest of my friends "Ruka is not right, ok? So don't press her, she will tell us when she is ready"

"No, she will tell us now" Jack insisted and I felt the coldness of his voice in my back.

"Jack" Martha warned him but he ignored her with his eyes still focus on Ruka.

In any other case I should just shut up but not now. It's about my sister for Ra's shakes "Don't…" I started trying hard to hide my fear but Ruka stopped me placing her hand on mine.

"It's ok Rua. Jack is right" she admitted, "there is still one thing I didn't tell anyone yet, not even you"

My jaw dropped but I quickly recover; Ruka always trusted me everything, so she must have a good reason from not telling me now.

"It's alright" Aki said with sympathy "if this is about Yusei…"

"It _is_ about Yusei" Jack cut her off absolutely sure about it; I was still wondering.

Ruka took a deep breath as she opened her mouth "You see… in my last dream… Ancient Fairy said something else before she faded away…"

"What was it?" Crow asked as she made a long pause.

Ruka hesitated a little. Then she closed her eyes before she opened her mouth again "She said Regulus will visit me and I must waiting for him"

I gave her a confused look before I turned my eyes to the rest of my friends. But all of them had pretty much the same expression as mine.

"Requlus is one of your cards, right?" Crow asked in the end.

Ruka nodded "and Ancient Fairy's loyal friend" she added.

"So… that means Regulus came to you" Aki mused "that's why you were screaming?"

"Not exactly" Ruka disagreed.

"Why I don't understand a thing?" Carly wondered but no one answered her. Jack just squeezed her arm a little.

"What you mean not exactly?" he asked my sister "Did he or did he not came to your dream" throw the question straight, waiting for an also straight answer.

"He did come" Ruka replied and I heard some gasps "But lightly"

"What you mean, lightly?" Aki asked in hurry as her patience was ending.

I didn't blame her; she was a mess when she learned about Yusei, and Ruka just informed us about something really strange but also important about him.

"I heard his voice in my head" Ruka explained, "only that, I was trying to spotted him but he wasn't there, I could hear only his voice"

"What did he tell you?"

"He said we must hurry, the time is against us, and we must hurry"

"That's why you were screaming?" Martha asked pale as ghost.

"I tried to called him back, I begged him to tell me more" Ruka continued "but he said he couldn't stay longer and be waiting for his next visit"

"That's all?" Jack asked with less cold on his voice. In fact I thought I hear a hint of sympathy in his tone.

Ruka nodded.

"What's that suppose to mean?" I asked but I knew already that I wouldn't get any answer.

"That this dream-vision of her is more important than she thought and there will be more" Jack answered leaving me with an opened mouth.

"Why you didn't tell us sooner about this?" Aki wondered, knitting her eyebrows "that Ancient Fairy would send Regulus to you?"

"I'm sorry guys" Ruka said with apology all over her face "I wasn't sure when he would show up himself, or even if he would ever show up. I'm sorry; I didn't want to give you false hopes for nothing"

My heart beat faster. She carried this agony all by herself the last few days but then I realize something else too "That's the reason you always connected Yusei with Stardust Dragon?" the question-fact slipped from my lips immediately.

"Yes" she admitted.

"So things are more complicate than we thought" Crow commented.

"And time is against us…" Aki repeated her words "so we must hurry"

"I'm sorry" Ruka said again and looked down in embarrassment. I hug her tighter.

"Don't worry Ruka" Crow comforted her "we understand; this is hard for you as it is for all of us" he was calm and looking my sister with sympathy "but if you find out something more about Yusei, If Regulus talk to you again or shows up, don't keep it to yourself, ok?" and she nodded.

"Even if it is false alarm" Jack added and Ruka nodded again.

"Alright guys" Martha cleared her throat "back to your rooms" she ordered "leave the girl rest a little and we will talk tomorrow"

"Good night" everyone said and one by one left the room quietly.

"Don't worry Ruka" I tried to comforted her "you can sleep, I look after you even from bad dreams"

"I'm not afraid" she whispered and lie back to her bed "as long as you are with me" and she closed her eyes to get some sleep. Soon I joined her.

But it wasn't a good sleep. When I woke up in the morning I had a strange feeling in my heart, like something really heavy was on my shoulders; but I had at least one reason to feel this way; today we are going to visit Yusei in the hospital.

Since it wasn't the first time for me, Ruka, Aki and Martha I had an idea of what we will have to face there but its still hurts. It hurts like hell actually, seeing Yusei in such terrible condition, fighting for his life and the worst part; I can't help him. It's not fair. The first time it was impossible to stopped crying for all of us; Aki was still crying even when we left, but today I think I can control myself better.

As we were taking our breakfast nobody spoke a lot, only to say what was needed since everyone's mood was heavy and dark. Carly was asking Jack a lot of questions but although he always answered her he didn't gave her much attention. Crow was unusually silences; not even the orphans managed to cheer him up.

"I will be ok guys" he told them right before we leave.

I was so deep in my thoughts; Ruka's words, Jack's counting and more and at the same time I was trying to control my feelings and keep an eye on my sister that I didn't even notice our ride for Martha's house to the hospital and before I blink my eyes we were there; in Yusei's room, holding Ruka's hand trying to comforted her, or she was trying to conformed me. I wasn't sure.

"I will wait for the doctor" Martha said and stayed outside as we entered.

There he was, in the same room, lying in the same bed, even in the same position, with a small pipe on his nose supplied him with air. I swallowed hardly; he wasn't even able to breathe by himself.

The monitor beside him was beeping rhythmically synchronized with his heartbeat; and the proof that he was still alive. He was still with us, but it was a torture seeing him like this. This feeling in my heart, this fear of… lost. Tears were ready to roll down but I hold them back.

"Please Yusei, hang on" I whispered to myself.

"I will wait outside with Martha" Carly informed us and only Jack replied nodding his head to her direction as she left the room to give us some time together.

All the team 5D's are here in this room. I was always imagined and waited our reunion but I never thought it would be like this. This feeling or fear of lost or whatever it was anyway seemed somehow familiar to me; but I couldn't understand why. No one spoke for a while. I could almost sense everyone's pain because this silence was actually screaming out loud every single drop of suffering, agony, strangle and sorrow for our friend's unfair fate.

I placed my hand on my sister's shoulders. I was ready to break down from the weight of the emotions, let alone Ruka, since she is more sensitive to other people's feelings. I almost heard Aki's silence cry. We stayed like this for some time. I couldn't count how much; maybe ten or twenty minutes. It was Crow who spoke first breaking the painful silence.

"He looks so peaceful" he whispered "as if he is sleeping" his voice cracked and he closed his eyes to stop the tears from rolling down his cheeks.

"But he is not sleeping" Jack's expression was a mystery and the tone of his voice shocked me.

It wasn't even sound like it was Jack who spoke. He was so… scared, angry but also calm and painful in the same time. He placed his hand on Yusei's and bent above him.

"You must wake up soon. You have to" he whispered, "otherwise I will never forgive you"

I could barely hear him and I felt tearing myself. And I knew it wouldn't be Yusei, which he would be mad at, but himself. I perfectly understood his emotions since I was in his position years ago. I was only three years old the last time I felt this way but I'm still remember everything; every single moment of agony. I felt a pinch in my heart, as I realize why I was familiar to those feelings.

"It reminds me you Ruka" I trembled a little "when we were three years old and you felt into a coma, remember?"

Ruka nodded "when my mind was into the Spirit Word. I stayed there for almost a month. It was the first time when I met Ancient Fairy dragon" she paused a little "It was odd; I was there but still I could hear Rua's voice calling me to come back"

Aki cleared her throat but her eyes were a little red; as she was trying not to cry and I felt sorry for her "Is there…" she began "I mean… you think Yusei… can hear us too?"

"I don't know Aki" Ruka placed one hand on her shoulder "I can't tell for sure, I can only wish for it"

"To hear us and…" she didn't manage to finish her sentence as we heard Martha's voice.

"Doctor!" and with a quick look with wide eyes to each other we rushed to get out of the room as soon as possible and run over Martha and doctor's direction, to hear what he was ready to say about our friend. Carly was there too taking notes to her notepad.

"Did he have any progress?" Martha asked full o hope but the doctor shook his head.

"All his vital organs working fine, even his drain shows some kind of activity sometimes" he explained "In fact he looks perfectly well except…" he scratched the back of his head, a little stiff "well except the fact he is in a coma and he is not waking"

"There must be an answer to all this!" Jack glared at him angrily "You are the doctors; you must tell us why this is happened"

I looked at him a bit surprised knowing what's next.

"Um, there is still some rare occasion which even sciences raise hands…" the doctor began but apparently Jack's patience run out.

"It's your job to find out!" he shouted that loud and even thought I expected something like that, I bounced and Carly dropped her notepad from shock.

"Calm down Jack" Martha placed one hand to his shoulder "I'm sure they are doing anything in their power"

"That's not enough" Jack burst in anger "Yusei is in there" he pointed the door of his room "and we still standing here saying we don't know what happen to him or what we can do to help him?"

"Jack there is no point to yell like that, he will…" Ruka started but he cut her off as wrath flashed into his eyes.

"I don't give a damn of what _is he_ _going_ to do" he turned to the doctor furious "or the sciences, or the other doctors…" he was completely out of control but to speak the truth I agreed with him. But unlike Jack I was able to remain calm a little bit longer "I know what _I am going_ to do" and he pointed himself "I'm going to find out how I can help my friend and I won't stop until I succeed it"

It was such the rush of his anger that nobody dared to say anything; no even to agree with him.

"I told you it was he" we heard a pleasant male voice with a hint of joy and in all the tension we were in I dare say it was the most strange sound we accepted to hear and caught us out of guards.

* * *

_Chapter 8 gave me some hard time to write it but I think it's good enough. Thank you; all of you, for your support! It means a lot to me._

_I'm still ill (it sucks) but I will try to update the next chapter, which will have more information about Yusei, soon!_

_A little sad chapter I must say but... hey! Ruka had a message from Regulus! And his friends visit Yusei in hospital… how was it possible to keep sadness away? And Jack is furious with the doctor… Any guesses of who will show up? You will find out in the next chapter; which will have plenty on new information ^_^_

_Well since I'm still not in good health and pc making dizzy, I wasn't able to double check for mistakes…again let's hope there are few (not lots) of them… again! I will try to update as soon as possible!_

_My thanks to: _**ItalyGirl58**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, and _**Chrome Nagi Dokuro**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	9. Good and bad news

**Chapter 9 – Good and bad news**

Ruka's Pov

"_I told you it was he_. Jack Atlas!" we heard the same joyful male voice pronounced his name.

"And I agreed with you from the beginning" that was a female voice which replied to the male one and sound more serious without any playful mood.

I turned my eyes with wonder at the end for the corridor and all of my friends did the same. There were two people walking to our direction, a man and a woman. Their faces were too familiar and even if none of us haven't looked upon them all those years the time didn't change them a lot. The man was tall and muscular with dark brown hair, wearing a white shirt and gray pants and kept his jacket thrown on his shoulder; the woman was shorter with amber eyes and light-blue short hair and was wearing white skirt, blue jacket above a white shirt and high heels.

"Ushio, Mikage!" Aki exclaimed in shock.

"You know Jack" Ushio chuckled "you have to yell a little bit louder because there are some people few blocks away who didn't hear you"

Jack glared at him saying nothing as the newcomers greeted the rest rest of us.

"What's up man?" Crow smirked and gave Ushio a friendly tap on his shoulder "How is work?"

"Hmm you know, we try to keep town safe"

"As usual and are you coping?" Crow asked with a teasing tone.

"With great success" Ushio replied angrily and everyone laugh.

"What brings you here guys?" Aki asked.

"You will find out soon" Mikage answered her "I heard from your father your progress doctor Izayoi" she added and Aki blush at the sound of her title.

"Umm… thanks" she muttered still embarrassed.

"It's true Aki, so you have to used to it" and I gave her an encouragement look as I turn to Mikage "It's been a while since the last time I saw you, It's so good to see you again, everything ok?" and I sake her hand.

"Nice to see you too Ruka" She replied politely "more than ok I must say"

"Ruka is that you?" Ushio asked in surprised "you grow up a lot since the last time I saw you, just like your brother" he smiled "I supposed you already finished school, so what are you doing now?"

"I'm training to become a turbo duelist" Rua announce in hurry smiling "And Ruka is studding Art in college" and pointing at my direction.

Ushio raised his eyebrows "Is that so? That's great, good for you"

"Thanks, soon enough I will challenge you in a turbo duel"

"I will wait patience until then" Ushio dipped his head "oh, and by the way" he turned to the blond duelist again "very impressive match back then" he was still smiling and there wasn't a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

That was a little odd; he meant every word and looked really happy, more than usual. Since everyone knew his crush on Mikage and… well… Mikage was a member of Jack's fan club, so Ushio always kept a not-really-good-to-see-you attitude towards Jack.

"Congratulations for your last victory, Atlas-sama" Mikage officially announced and flashed him a wide smile.

"Huh, nothing less than Jack Atlas" he declared.

I roll my eyes; same old Jack, proud and with a big idea for himself; he will never change.

"Carly what are you doing here?" Mikage asked suddenly when she spotted her near Jack taking notes but soon she shook her head "I suppose being with Jack in more interesting than Pro league" and gave her a light smile.

Rua gave me a confused look and I returned to him. Mikage and Carly weren't the best friends. I have a feeling that we missed many things in those six years away from Neo Domino but I guess we will find out soon enough.

"Well yes" Carly admitted "and by the way thanks for your help, although you didn't do it for me"

"Did we miss something here?" Crow asked but they ignored him.

"It was my pleasure to help"

"I help too, so don't you think you have to thank me too Jack?" Ushio pointed himself.

"Actually I didn't ask for your help" Jack crossed his arms "you volunteer and I already thank Mikage"

"Whatever" Ushio said moving his hand and turned to the rest of the gang.

"Can anyone explain what's going on here?" Crow asked again a little angry.

"Mikage" Jack said without looking at him "helped me to find when your flights were and booked mine and Carly's ticket. That's why I manage to came back in time" he explain and Carly nodded

"That… was very thoughtful of you" Aki commented.

"Yeah" I agreed caused Mikage to blush.

"It was nothing, really" she muttered sheepishly.

"Don't forget Crow's team victory too" Rua announced suddenly changing topic for Mikage's great relief, pointing on Crow and caught him out of guards.

"Um, what? Who?" he looked around confused before he opened his eyes as he realized "Aw! Yeah, we had a victory too"

"So, I think we must congratulate all of you for your successes" Mikage announced happily.

"You made us proud kids" Ushio smiled to all of us.

I heard Jack grunting behind me and I smiled.

"Thank you guys" Aki thanked them with warm "But you didn't tell us why you are here yet"

"Yeah, you came to visit Yusei too?" Crow tried to guess.

Ushio shook his head "We already visit him a couple of days after he fell into the coma"

"But then…" Rua started but Mikage cut him off.

"This time we are here because of you" she explained "We wanted to have a speech with all of you" and her gaze traveled on everyone's faces.

I had a bad feeling about it. If they want to talk with us then it can't be for good.

"How did you know we were here Mikage?" Aki asked politely.

Ushio smiled at her "We receive a call from Martha first thing in the morning and informed us, you were all here and you would visit your friend soon" he explained "so…" he placed his hand on Mikage shoulder "we decided to join you and welcome you back to Neo Domino after all those years. How long is it been after all?" he asked looking the woman beside him smiling.

Mikage gave him a mysterious look with a little bit of anger and warmth in the same time "more than six years" she replied before she turn her gaze on us "a lot can change in six years" she mused.

I was totally confused by their actions; I mean they were acting a lot differently from what I remember. They used to work together, sure they were partners and still are but they looked more closed now, with more intimateness.

And then my eye caught something that made me to gasp in surprise. And I wasn't the only one. Rua's eyes become bigger than golf's balls. My eyes travel from his hand to hers and I hold my breath as I realized what was happening. Of course, how can and I didn't notice sooner? That explains everything; why Jack's presence doesn't bother Ushio, why Mikage is less stuck on Jack; it was so simple. I looked my friends only to see they were as surprises as I was. I turned to the police members all emotion ready to speak but it was Aki who spoke first.

"You guys are married?" she asked absolutely astonished.

"Indeed" Ushio flashed a huge smile and throw his arm on his wife shoulders. She looked down for a moment with red cheeks.

"You are married now?" Rua was in shock.

Ushio and Mikage; I shook my head still surprised. Both have the same gold ring on their fingers. I admitted it; I didn't see that coming. Although I always thought they are going to make a great couple together since they have a lot in common.

"Congratulations then" Aki officially announce smiling deeply "we didn't know"

"It was a close wedding" Mikage informed us "so we didn't let it spread to the public" and threw a quick peek on Jack's direction.

"I'm so happy about you" I smiled "you always looked great together" and both of Ushio and Mikage blush a little.

"How? When?" Crow muttered still in shock.

"Six months ago" Mikage informed us.

"It was when I started to fear that Ushio would never proposed to you" Martha smiled to the couple "but all men need a little push"

Ushio rubbed the back of his neck a little embarrassed "Yeah" he admitted "I supposed if it wasn't you then I would never asked her on a date"

"But better late than never" Martha gave him a wide smile.

"You knew it? Why you didn't tell us?" Aki asked her confused.

"I thought it would be a nice surprised for all of you" Martha explained with a grin.

Jack grunting loudly "so it's time to give you my congratulations in person this time. I wish every happiness for you two"

"Atlas-sama…" Mikage muttered full of emotion.

Our gazes turned on him. He knew it? Apparently he knew.

"Take good care of her" Jack warned Ushio with a you-better-do-what-I-said-or-else tone in his voice.

"Of course I will" Ushio returned in the same tone before he smiled "and thanks by the way"

"You welcome"

"May I wish the same for you Jack?" Ushio flash a quick glimpse on Carly.

But Jack didn't replied or said anything back. He stands there unexpressed. We were still looking one another confused waiting for someone to explain. Rua wasn't recovered yet; he was still in shock from the good news.

"I knew it from the beginning" Carly explained and we turned our gaze on her "and I informed Jack three months ago"

"That explains a lot" Crow mused "I'm really glad about you two, it was good news"

"Unfortunately we are here with some bad ones too" Ushio informed and become more serious.

"What you mean?" Jack knitted his eyebrows.

"We discovered some things that you will find out quite interesting"

"Is it about Yusei?" Aki asked immediately.

Mikage nodded "We are here with lots of questions and some answers you may want to know" she added.

I blinked in her direction both confused and surprised. I was right then; this can't be good. I felt like an invisible hand grabs my heart and squeeze it hard.

"About what?"

"About his last duel"

Everyone gasped. No, definitely this can't be good. Mikage and Ushio's expressions were too serious and hard, to have something good to tell us.

"His duel?" Rua asked still in shock but this time for a different reason and with different topic.

"Hm…" Mikage started "I think it's better to go somewhere else to talk"

She was right; we were all still standing in the hospital's corridor, outside of Yusei's room.

"You are right" Aki agreed with a quick look around.

"Let's go to the cafeteria" Ushio suggested.

We nodded and followed them to a different side of the hospital, less depressing and with more crowds. Some ordered coffees and we take a place in a big table looking the police's officer couple with agony.

"Explain" Jack said as we all sit down.

"Umm" Mikage tried to find the better way to start "you see before Yusei passed out for the first time he was dueling someone, a simple duel…"

"We know that already" Crow cut her off "so there is no need to analyze his match and the problematic duel disks"

The couple exchanges a meaning look and I was so wondering of what's next that even my curiosity overcame my agony.

"It wasn't a coincidence, right?" I asked immediately.

Mikage shook her head "No" she said, "when we heard about the duel and the problems on it… it sounds very… well we searched for it"

"At the beginning we thought it would be easy to find out but we found ourselves in front of a strange and… well not common situation" Ushio mused.

"So… hearing this and seeing your expression I supposed his duel disk wasn't problematic, right?" Martha asked but she looked like she knew the answer already.

Mikage hesitated before she answered, "You are right" she affirmed in the end.

She waited a little if someone wanted to ask something but no one was surprised enough to start spilling questions on her, since we already believe that this could be something possible. So we stayed silence waiting for her to continue.

Mikage cleared her throat "his duel disk wasn't problematic at all nor his opponent's. But clearly something was wrong with the holograms so…"she paused.

"So we investigated it" Ushio continued "and we find out something really…" he knitted his eyebrow trying to find the appropriate word "…strange" he ended up.

"What you mean strange?" Jack raised one eyebrow "can you be more specific"

"You see sometimes holograms can be problematic but not with the same way which were on Yusei's battle" Ushio explained scratching the back of his head "and that kind of problem of course never lead to failed summons or… you see" everyone was looking at him breathless to finish but clearly it looked more difficult then he or we thought "holograms

"We find out" Mikage hurried to replay, "than when Yusei was dueling the Momentum was also showed a huge activity and when I say huge I mean… really huge" she explained

"Can you give us an example to understand?" Aki asked politely but clearly she was terrifying.

Mikage turned her gaze to her shoes for a while "Umm" she muttered "well" she raised her head decisively "imagine the same kind of power Momentum showed years ago at the battle against the Dark Signers…" everyone gasps "…but with more source of energy…"

Aki gasp and placed her one hand on her lips.

"More?" I mumbled.

"More like…" Crow wanted to say something but hesitated in the last minute pale as ghost.

"You mean something like the…"Jack tried to ask too but he was too nervous to complete it.

"Why you guys are pale as ghosts?" Rua asked and I sense his fear growing. I didn't blame them; I was scare too with a bad feeling of knowing why.

"Its ok guys, you can relax" Ushio comforted them but without success "definitely the powers was less than Zero Reverse's" Ushio added and everyone in the room was free to breathe out.

"But then what was it?" Crow wondered and the couple stayed silence.

* * *

_Quick update huh? I had the day off so I had more time to spend on my story._

_ Ushio and Mikage showed up! I thought it would be easy to find out it would be them but ok ^_^ and they are married too… (Note: sorry to all of you who don't like them together but I do like this pair) and Mikage is the old friend who helped Jack from a previous chapter._

_They came with questions and with answers… they already gave some answers but in the next chapter things will be more complicate. From now on things are going to be really interesting with more questions and answers in every chapter…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying,****Chrome Nagi Dokuro**_ and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews and their guesses._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	10. Questions

**Chapter 10 – Questions**

Aki's Pov

Crow and Jack were looked more relief and their face's color returned to the original one. I can't blame them for their reaction when Mikage informed us about the Momentum. Their life marked hard because of this incident; they lost their parents and grow up in Satellite as orphans, living in the streets before Martha took care of them. Hearing for a new source of energy theirs thought focus on ones of their greatest fears and for a moment a possible second Zero Reverse crossed from my mind too.

But that was a proof; a proof of this duel and his weakness maybe somehow connected with his coma. I wish Yusei was in good health sitting with us right now. But in the same time I knew he would be really worrying hearing about Momentum's higher activity, after all he cares too much for this city, so it's better this way. I shook my head; no it's not fair he doesn't deserve that. He deserves to be happy and healthy.

But right now I was feeling Mikage's words pressing me to think beyond Yusei and his terrible fate. Something else happen back then and definitely still happening. But in that case not only Yusei, but also the rest are in danger; I, my friends, Mikage, Ushio, the citizens… My Ra, this is…

"If the energy was like's Zero Reverse then none of us would be here now" Ushio continued pulling me out of my thoughts "But still the source is really big and somehow adversely affected his duel"

"Is this possible?" Crow wondered.

"We have some theories…"Mikage started but Jack cut her off.

"This doesn't make sense" he said flatly "maybe this source appeared but why only Yusei affected? And if this power still exists then why no one else ended up in a coma like our friend?"

I gasp hearing his words; I was right, he was right; but then… my mind wasn't helping at all.

"But everything look normal" Crow mused "no one faced or facing problems with their duels and the holograms"

"Unless there are more out there and the government trying to hide them from spread" Carly said in hurry.

"If something like that happening then the people need to know if there is such a danger from their duels…" Martha added.

"And all the matches with solid vision must be canceled too" Carly was writing in her notepad without a single break.

"Calm down everyone" Mikage immediately reacted with surprise with our sudden word's attack.

"You people think that if there were such a danger out there we would let people still dueling?" Ushio asked angrily "It's our job to keep this city safe"

We looked each other still confused.

"But then why…?" I started.

"Everyone is safe" Mikage cut me off "so you don't have to worry about duels" she stated flatly.

"Everything is fine" Ushio hurried to affirm her words.

"I suppose this is good news then" Rua shrugged still confused.

"But you still didn't give me an answer" Jack returned to his question.

"You got a point Jack but… you see we thought the same so we made a research for this too and…" Ushio hesitated and glance away. I have a bad feeling about this.

"You are not going to like what we are about to tell you guys, but you have to listen very carefully" Mikage's voice was cold like ice and I felt weird, like the whole cafeteria's room suddenly become colder and darker.

My heart beat faster. Mikage was absolutely sure that we weren't going to like whatever they wanted to tell us, and that was too strange. For a moment I wanted to stand up and run away as fast as I could but in the same time, something like an invisible power force me to stay in my seat waiting quietly to hear something which I wouldn't like it.

The couple exchanged a meaning look before Ushio cleared his throat and prepared to speak "You see, maybe you don't know this but we find out Yusei was in… well… he…" he stopped trying to find a way to spill out the rest.

We left in an awkward silence looking one another in wonder as the couple exchanged one more look.

"You see" Mikage make a try to tell us this time "he was in the middle on a new experiment…"

"We know that" Jack said in hurry.

"Really?" Mikage asked immediately and everyone nodded.

"What else do you know about it?" Ushio asked a little uneasy.

"Only this" Ruka answered.

"Yusei told me about a new experiment he was investigated but avoided telling me more" Martha explained.

"Unfortunately" Carly commented disappointing.

"Um Carly" Mikage looked a little stiff "I would like to ask you something before we continued" and she knitted her fingers.

Everyone turned to the reporter girl but she was as surprised as the rest of us.

"About what?" she knitted her eyebrows.

"I know it's you job but I would like to keep it quiet… well until we find out more"

"You can keep our voice down, people need to know and I will…" she reacted but Jack stopped her placing his hand in front of her.

"If this is about Yusei, then she won't write anything" he announced causing a huge surprise to Carly, but after the first shock she gives up and nodded.

Thank Ra Jack has this kind of influence to her.

"Now we settled up the press things, continue" Jack almost ordered.

Ushio cleared up his throat again "this new experiment he was investigating… is directly relating with the increased flow of energy, Momentum stared to show up couples of days ago"

I raised my eyebrows feeling something strange in his words

"We believe, he…" Mikage tried to continue but she didn't have the chance.

"What are you saying Mikage?" Jack voice was colder than usual and his lips were a thin line. For a moment I feared he would burst in anger.

"No!" it was Crow who raised his voice caused me to blink my eyes in surprise to his direction "you are joking, right?" he was pale as ghost again.

I was still looking around trying to understand but it looked impossible. Both Jack and Crow must have realized something I was still missing. The twins where looking each other with more confuse in their faces.

"What is happening?" Rua asked without understanding anything.

No one gave him an answered as both Jack and Crow were looking angrily Mikage and Ushio who look each other a little stiff.

"What is that mean?" Ruka asked again.

I looked at them confused but it was impossible to guess what on earth would be in their minds

"That mean" Jack explained this time with his eyes still on the couple "they implied that Yusei investigating something dangerous enough to throw him into a coma allowing large energy flow entering the earth"

Everyone gasped.

"We didn't…" Mikage tried to explain, "we never said he did… but the evidence…" she minced her words.

After this statement we were all stunned. The answer hit me in the face at full force and I felt my blood pressure rising and my anger to grow so much that erased any rational thought in my mind and fills with indignation.

"It's Yusei for Ra's shake" I was furious and hit my hand on the table. For a moment I thought I will lose control of my powers but luckily nothing like that happened "you can't be serious. He did everything in his power to save this city and now you are saying he was making such a dangerous experiment?" I paused to take a breath "I refuse to believe it!" I stated.

"Me either" Crow agreed with me "I know him, I grow up with him, he was feeling somehow responsible for his dad's research; he spent the most of his life carrying this darkness in his heart."

"We know that…" Ushio began.

"He suffered all those years feeling guilty for something he didn't even do. It wasn't his fault but he was still feeling responsible" Crow continued cut him off.

"I don't believe this" Rua was in shock and Ruka shook her head and started crying.

"And now you are saying he just walk into his father's steps making dangerous experiments?" I'm sure that if my voice could throw fire then everything in the cafeteria would be already on flames.

"I know Yusei would never…" Mikage paused unable to continue as we all looking at her like she was insane.

"Yusei would never do anything that would put the city in danger" Martha stated with pale face "I know that, and you know the same too, you know Yusei…"

"We do…" Mikage hurried to say "we want to believe this too, but…"

"There is no 'but' Mikage and you know that" Jack glanced at her direction and she lowered her gaze to the table.

"I knew this would be hard for you guys" Ushio took control raising his voice to make us calm a little and stop throwing fire "You care about your friend, we do too and want to believe that this is some kind of coincidence but you must hear everything we have to tell you before you make your own conclusions"

I opened my mouth to disagree again but Mikage spoke first.

"Ushio is right, we reacted in the same way but we had no choice. We had investigate everything and all evidence indicates that his new experiment is associated with Momentum's increased activity" she explained "and we find out this energy appeared the same time Yusei started his experiment"

We were in a dead silence; no one spoke and I was trying hard to find a balance between my feelings and my logic. My heart was telling me to doubt everything and Yusei would never do something to put the city in danger, to put me in danger; but my mind was telling me Mikage and Ushio had a point if all of their words are true.

"Unfortunately Yusei was in this research alone, so no one in the lab know something to tell us"

"That's odd. Yusei was always working and cooperating with everyone" Ruka mused, "his bonds with his partners and friends are his strength"

"Yes" her brother hurried to agreed with her "He always counted to others, I mean at the end he is the one who save the day but never without our help or any of his friend's help"

"We know that too and we are wondering the same"

"We are as confused as you guys are" Ushio pointed themselves and then us "but this isn't the only unanswered question we have. We still have a lot of questions which need answers…"

"First we must search more about this new experiment of his" Mikage continued "but since he was the only one who knew about it it's more than impossible to find someone who can help us more, so we can only make guesses and hypothesis about it…"

"Second what caused the coma?" Ushio mused, "it's clear as day that his experiment connected but we don't really know why it happened and why this happened only to Yusei, since the energy spread around"

"That's really something that never crossed my mind" Rua muttered "but he will be ok, right?"

I pressed myself to believe in a positive answer. Otherwise I don't know what to do in a world without Yusei.

"We honestly don't know but we hope for it"

"Third we must find how to wake him up" Ushio looked more serious this time.

"As much as you don't believe it we care about him too, and we all need his help"

"We need his help?" I repeated Mikage's words "I thought he needs us… Ruka said…" I turned to her confused but she shook her head with wide eyes.

"We need any help we can get" she cut me off.

I gave her an apologetic look; clearly she didn't want to say anything about her dream vision to the police's officers. She smiled at me hastily, a sign that it was ok.

"That's more than truth" Ushio commented, "we are going to need any possible help" thank Ra they didn't realize anything, but I didn't have the chance to say more and made them more suspicious.

"And why you need his help anyway" Crow asked.

"Seeing him in a coma I can say he waiting for our help" Carly raised her eyebrows moving her pen from one hand to another.

Since Jack didn't allowed her to write anything about Yusei, and I must confess that it was a wise move Carly didn't complain again but she definitely looked annoyed and dismayed.

The couple exchange one more meaning look and I had a bad feeling about it; maybe the worst feeling so far.

"We need his help with Momentum's sudden activity" Mikage explain and glanced away.

"Why you need Yusei's help?" I throw the question slowly but that wouldn't keep the answer unknown for long.

"There are a lot of other scientist who work there" Martha knitted her eyebrows "Why you need specifically Yusei's help"

"You see…" Ushio rub the back of his neck, not a good sign "Since Yusei was the only one who knew about this experiment no one else can offer his help to…" he paused and bit his lips.

"Just spill it out" Jack ordered.

"Don't keep us in wonder, tell us" Crow asked but he was clearly scared of what we are going to hear this time.

"You see" Mikage started to explain, "we must find a way to stop Momentum's activity…" she make a long pause which everyone hold their breath "because the energy growing nonstop"

I heard several gasp from my friends but my breath was already cut and for a moment I thought my heart stopped beating too. I closed my eyes to hold back my tears; I was lost, I didn't know what to do or think anymore.

"Yusei" I heard someone near me whispering, "What have you done?"

* * *

_Another quick update!_

_ Oups! Ushio and Mikage's news were definitely bad! What do you think guys? What Yusei have done, what is his new experiment anyway…? What happened? You will find out in time… ^_^_

_My thanks to: _**SamSam92, Gotta be Annoying**_ and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	11. Promise

**Chapter 11 – Promise**

Jack's Pov

I was mad; no, I was furious and not only with one person. I was angry with Mikage and Ushio for theirs awful news; with me because I couldn't help my friends and Yusei, with Yusei because he was in a coma and he couldn't give us the answers we want. What have you done Yusei?

I still refused to believe Mikage's and Ushio's theories but I didn't have any clue to disagree with them. In order to I had a better question, which I have to answer as soon as possible: 'Why you did what you did Yusei?'

I must find out 'why' and not 'what' because I'm sure he had a reason and knowing Yusei he definitely had a damn good reason for doing this experiment.

But what could it be? No one knows; he kept it only to himself. Why Yusei? If it was something important, which I believe it was then why you didn't ask for help? And now Mikage informed us that we need _your_ help to be able to stop this stupid experiment of yours. I squeezed my fists in anger but I couldn't take it anymore;

"Damn you Yusei, why you didn't ask for _our_ help you stupid one?" I shouted angrily banging my fist on the wall to break out my nerves.

I stand there with my hand still on the wall of my old bedroom breathing heavily trying to calm myself when I heard a knock on the door.

"Jack they are…" Crow said entering the room but he stopped immediately seeing me out of control "what's up man?"

"Why he did it?" I asked and he stared at me with both wonder and confused.

"What are you talking about?"

I glared at him taking a deep breath, I forgot; he is the stupid one so I have to spill it out for him "the experiment" I explain in hurry "Why he did it?"

"You asking me man?" Crow pointed himself with wide eyes "how I'm I supposed to know? I just heard it just like you did. I'm as lost as you are"

I took a deep breath and turned to face out of the window. Crow's orphans were playing in the yard. For a moment my mind played tricks as some of my memories projected before me; I, Crow and Yusei, little kids playing and running in the same courtyard, casually and carefree.

"Do you remember Crow?" I addressed to my friend without looking at him "when we were little and someone fall down and hit his leg or his arm, it was Yusei who run to help us first" my voice was unusually calm and full of bitterness.

"I do" Crow voice sounded like mine as he came near me "he was always there for us when we need help, even if we didn't know that we actually need help. He was a real friend; like those you find only once in a life time if you are lucky"

Yes, this is exactly what he was; a real friend, a loyal friend. A friend like that always forgives his friends' mistakes no matter how big their betrayal may be. Mine was the worst but still;

"He found the heart to forgive me" I whispered without caring that Crow was there too hearing me.

"What are you talking about?" I felt his gaze upon me.

I couldn't find the courage to returned it and look him in the eyes and in the same time I couldn't believe the words that came out of my mouth "I betray him with the worst way;" I explained still looking away "I took his favorite card, his first duel runner and I run away" I squeezed my fists again, but this time I was angry with myself for what I did "I abandoned him, my hometown, my friends, even you Crow and I left"

There were no words to describe the shame I felt for my actions in the past; but all those years, from the Dark Signer until now I burry this shame and feelings deep down in my heart. In the same heart everyone thought it was made from stone.

"I know" it was impossible to understand his tone. If he was angry or not but I didn't care to find out.

"He is a great friend" I continued "He found the heart to forgive what I did to him and to our friends even if I never asked for forgiveness; he accepted me as his friend again, as his best friend" it was the first and I want to believe the last time saying this; I'm still too proud to repeat it.

"That's how Yusei is; a true friend and this explain everything"

And to my surprise I felt his hand on my shoulder. At this time I was sure that he forgives me too, even if he didn't say anything about it. Yusei knew my feelings from the beginning without telling him a single word, but I always felt that Crow hadn't forgiven me yet. This is how Crow is; deep down in his heart, he always waiting for my apologies first. Well he got it now and I have to admit it; it was a great relief knowing that both of my best friends, my brothers forgive me.

"It's such an irony you know" he muttered and I look at him, with wondering look "even if he is in a coma and needs _our_ help, we still need _his_ help to stop Momentum" he explained.

I knew exactly how he was feeling "And now we must help him in order to help us again" I commented coldly.

We stayed like this for some minutes; nobody spoke. We didn't have too; as much different as our characters are we still having those bonds, which Yusei gave us, to feel and understand each other.

"When you came in you were saying something" I said.

He looked me a little confused "Ah! Yeah you are right" he nodded his head, "they all gathered downstairs to talk about the new evidences and what can we do. They are waiting for us"

"Then it's better if we won't let them waiting for long" and I marched to the door.

"Um, Jack?" Crow stopped me and I turned to him slowly.

"What?"

"Um" he looked away for a minute unknowing of how to begin before he shook his head "nothing" he ended up.

"Let's go then" and I turned again headed to the stairs with Crow behind me.

Everyone was there, gathered at the large table talking already.

"Ah Jack, Crow" Martha exclaimedwhen she sees us "come, we have a lot to discuss"

I nodded and took a seat near Carly. She flashed a warm smile at me but as much as I want it, I wasn't able to return it.

"We are waiting for you Jack" she explained without losing her smile.

One of the best things of Carly's was that she never cowed by my actions. I could be cold and distant but she always kept this smile for me like she was able to see my true feelings beyond my actions. That's why she was deferent from the others.

"We were thinking Mikage's and Ushio's words" Martha started.

"It was really interesting and now we have the connection which was assumed yesterday" Ruka mused.

"Between his coma and his duel" Aki explained.

"And his new experiment also" Rua continued "I was right when I believed that he must thought or least guessed of something since he wanted to investigate it on his lab, but he didn't had the chance. Now we know he wanted to go to his lab because of his experiment"

"If only we knew what it was about" Carly commented disappointing. She didn't hold her notepad this time to take notes; that was a good sign. Until we find out what happen no one have to know.

"Rua was right when he said that everything somehow committed" Crow mused and Rua smiled satisfied with himself.

"And we have Ruka's theory too" Rua reminds us and I raised my eyebrows.

"The connection between Yusei and Stardust?" I asked.

Ruka nodded "you have to admitted it, both of them were weak almost ill"

"I believe Ruka is right" Aki agreed with her "we all have a connection with our Signers Dragons"

I thought about my Red Demon dragon; my very soul. Of course I have a connection with him, and with Scar Red Nova dragon too; my burning soul.

"Which they are not Signer Dragons anymore" Carly corrected, "since you are not Signers yourselves"

"Whatever" Aki shook her head "I still believe Ruka have a point"

I knitted me eyebrows "That's true" I agreed "we and our dragons are like one piece, but we don't know for sure that Stardust's failure is due to the Yusei's weakness. Likely is it due to the Momentum's increased energy"

"Yeah, Jack had a point" Crow agreed with me "we know for sure about that after all. His experiment had something to do also"

"And don't forget Yusei's last words" Ruka added

"I'm sorry Stardust" Martha repeated them.

"This is really interesting" I mused "but maybe it's a coincident. Maybe he wasn't thinking straight…"

"No Jack" Marhta doubted my words "I told you before, I was there, I held him, I saw his face, he knew what was happening to him. I feared also he knew what he had to do to stop it or at least tried to stop it, but his weakness didn't let him to do it. The coma caught him"

"So" Ruka looked us "this is a proof of Yusei's and Stardust's connection"

"Even if this sound ridiculous" Carly commented "I think Ruka have a point, a strong one may I say"

"Ok" I ended up "let's keep it as something most likely to happen back then…" I paused biting my lips from what I was ready to say "what about Mikage's and Ushio theory?"

"You mean if Yusei was investigating a dangerous experiment?" Aki's voice was colder than mine.

I stayed silence for a while remembering the last time we disagreed about Yusei. It was when he was captured; I had my doubts just like Crow and she was ready to kill us. It was the first time, which Aki actually scared me; I didn't fear her not even when she was the Black Rose Witch in the Fortune Cup, but if there is about Yusei then she doesn't tolerate any objection.

"I don't believe them too" Rua doubted their theory immediately. I want to do the same but something kept me the last minute.

Ruka nodded "Do you remember the Ark Cradle?" she asked but she didn't wait because she already knew our answers "Sherry reveals us that she has seen the future. Furthermore she warns Yusei not to go, as if does, he will…" she hesitated before she continued "he will die" she ended up.

"But he didn't" Rua disagreed "he didn't die"

"Only because he is the master of his fate" I stated "not Z-one's visions"

"He did survive because he found a way to change his destiny" Aki explained "and not only his, but everyone's"

"Yes, but also Yusei was ready to take the risk and go there, if doing it he would be able to save the city" Ruka continued her thinking "he was ready to give his life, so… he would never do something which put city in danger don't you think?"

"I do" Crow replied her "but the problem Ruka it's not us, but it's he. I want to believe it with all of my heart but I still don't understand why he was investigating an experiment with Momentum's power… I mean definitely Yusei's intentions weren't to put the city in danger and I put my hand on fire for this…"

"Maybe Crow is right" I mused looking at him, "we all agreed about Yusei; he will never put the city in danger. Maybe he made a discovery and started this project, which turned out to be dangerous for everyone. Maybe he wanted to find a way to stopped it after his duel but he didn't have the chance"

"I still don't believe it" Rua gave us an apologetic look.

"But they have a point Rua" Ruka muttered and her brother looked her with wide eyes.

"No way!" he exclaimed absolutely astonished.

"Think about it" she suggested "after all Mikage and Ushio said his experiment is connecting with Momentum's higher activity. It's possible enough to started a new project and then he found out it's not for good and tried to stop it"

Rua was frozen with open mouth before he shook his head "At least we all agree about Yusei's original intentions"

"I have faith in Yusei" Aki muttered flatly "I'm sure he tried his best to stop it. Martha said he worked hard without rest but he was too weak" she paused with surprise all over her face as she realizes something "that's it" she whispered and everyone turned "The reason why he wasn't saying anything about it, the same why only he fell into a coma" she was in shock from her own discovery and also lost into her thoughts as she didn't notice we were still looking her waiting.

"And…?" I raise my voice taking her back to reality.

She took a deep breath "he didn't want anyone else affected too" she announced and everyone gasp.

"Of course" I whispered.

"How stupid of us" Crow hit his hand on the table "he cares too much about everyone more than himself. He knew it was danger that's why he kept it quiet. So everyone else could be safe" and then froze and I saw a shadow in his gray eyes.

I took a deep breath "and he failed" I said out loud his and mine fear "Momentum's power is still out there growing and he can't stop it"

Ruka gasp placing a hand on her lips "So… everything is lost?" she asked with the terror of the answer in her eyes.

"There must be a way" Rua shouted.

Aki nodded "And we must find it fast. It's exactly as Ancient Fairy said" she throw a quick peek on Ruka "we must hurry and we are the only ones who can" her voice had a strange tone and cut like knife. She was stronger than I thought.

"That's right" I shouted and stand up "he tried to keep this town safe, to keep us safe and now he needs our help"

"Yeah! We will find a way to safe him and all together we will save the world again" Crow announced and stand up too

"As a team we always were" Rua exclaimed and stand up.

"Because nothing can break our bonds" Ruka stated and stand up.

"For Yusei" Aki stand up with decisively.

"For everyone" Martha stood up smiling.

"Don't forget about me" Carly stand up looking in our faces with excitement "I can help too"

"All of us will search everywhere and everything we can" I raised my voice "We will help Yusei. And that's a promise" and I put my hand in the air.

"Promise" everyone repeated loudly placing their hands above mine.

* * *

One more chapter! I love this story and I have all those ideas. I wish I had 32 hours a day to write more!

So his friends found something about his intentions, but still they don't know anything about his experiment. You think they will find out, or someone will help them again? I would like to hear your ideas ^_^

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_ and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	12. Searching

**Chapter 12 – Searching**

Ruka's Pov

After our promise we organized ourselves. We, actually Jack with our help made a list with our information, evidences, clues, theories and possible scenarios. Also he made a list of what we can do, or try to do to find more about Yusei and everything related to him, step by step.

Jack organized everything and distributed the parts of our plan. Aki stayed and work with the doctors in hospital. She told us they made some test which may help to find out something and she also spend all of her free time in the library searching in medical books for his condition.

Both Crow and Jack will have to travel for more information. It was just an idea to visit places like Nasca and some others and definitely we must find the man, which challenged Yusei in his last duel. Maybe he has something more to tell us, something Martha missed out when Yusei fainting.

But to be honest I think he won't prove himself much of help. But we are not able to leave behind information that might be useful. We need any possible help and even if he has nothing to tell as or the land of Nacsa proved to be just a travel destination and nothing more we are ready to take that risk, because there is still a chance, even a small one, he may have something to informed us and Nasca hold something interesting to find out.

At the top of Jack's list as the most helpful places to look was Yusei's house and lab; that's why I, Rua and Carly stayed behind too.

We went to the old garage where the 5D's team first was with my brother and Carly but we find absolutely nothing there. We checked his notes, his phone, his work files, as much as we found at least in his room with zero progress.

"Came on" Carly shouted, "This is stupid. If he had something important then he wouldn't keep it in his house, but on his lab"

"You are right" I admitted looking at her and Rua.

I was surprised when Carly said she would stay behind too to help my brother and me. I thought she would go with Jack; after all she always followed him, wherever he goes. She said she might be a better help for us two since she is a reporter and we are going to search for evidence. But my brother told me that she wanted to follow Jack and he told her to stay here and using her abilities as expert on papers and files and he will travel faster with his D-wheel alone. So she stuck with us.

I smiled hastily as I remember how influential Jack is to her. Rua commented the same day that if he told her to jump out of the window she would do it.

I sighed and put some books back to his small bookcase. We spent all day and find nothing. I just hope to find out something more helpful in our next target: Yusei's lab. How stupid of us we should visit this place from the beginning; we were talking about his experiment but none made the thought to go there and search. Something must be there, a clue, or maybe evidence, which may help us to find out about his experiment. What was the subject, what he was investigating, why he did it, what happened, or any other information we can gather.

"Ok" I said in hurry "tomorrow we will go there"

But the next day we found out that it wasn't that easy; his lab is not a place, which everyone can visit. We need special permission to go inside and certainly no ground for us to look for evidence. Not to mention some doors with codes and forbidden passages.

I have a feeling about this. I can't tell for sure if it's a good or a bad one but definitely is strange; like something, important or not, lies there waiting for us to find it and whatever it is I'm sure it will be helpful, I wish and hope at least. But the entry in his lab was still a pain and huge problem. Carly proved hers value when she thought one way to enter. She called on both people who could provide a solution. But even with their help things were still complicate.

"After we found out about his experiment the police made a small research to Yusei's lab. But small it's not enough since they found nothing, and I believe you are going to do a better job" Mikage said and Ushio agreed with her.

But not even they couldn't help us to take permission to search his lab "You will need permission from the police along with government approval" Ushio explained "since you are not member of the police or scientist yourselves"

"But that would take weeks" Carly exclaimed.

"We know and that's why…" Mikage paused and exchanged a meaning look with her husband.

"Look guys" Ushio took control of the conversation "we are not proud about what are we going to do, but we believe this is the only way and you are not going to tell anyone"

"Otherwise we will be in trouble" Mikage added.

"What are you going to do?" Carly asked immediately in wonder.

"Especially you Carly. You must never speak of it again"

"Ok" she agreed.

"In two days on Sunday the lab will be closed and the entire scientists will be at their homes" Ushio explained "we can give you our pass to go there and check his lab without anyone see you"

"We can give you only one day, you understand? Do anything you can to gather as much information as you can because you won't have the chance to go there again"

"This is illegal" Carly announced "and you are members of the police too. How could you expect for me to…"

"You want to help Yusei or not?" Mikage cut her off and gave her a strict look.

Carly opened her mouth but she closed it again and waved her head "Alright" she said in the end "I promise never speak of it again"

"This is frowned but we have no other choice" I said in hurry "We will go"

And this is what exactly we did. On Sunday we prepared ourselves to entering Yusei's lab. Mikage and Ushio did a great job; they gave us one of their security pass and a temporarily code to open the last door. When we enter the room I felt something strange like a warning and I took a deep breath.

"Let's hurry" I suggest and we spread in the lab searching everything and everywhere to find something, anything that maybe help us a little.

"Over here!" Rua shouted suddenly after a couple of hours with zero progress and both I and Carly run toward him.

"What did you find?" I asked immediately feeling my heart beating faster.

"Look" he pointed Yusei's desk "I checked all drawers, are full of papers and notes from various project but…" he trailed his hand in the last drawer "this one is locked. What you think is in there?" he asked meaningfully.

"Something which he tried to hide" Carly mused "but how are we going to opened it?" she added.

"We have to unlock it, because we won't have a second chance to come back" I warned.

"We must find the key then" Carly raised her head to look around the room but my brother giggled.

"Screw the keys" Rua chuckled "We don't have the whole day ahead of us. I know a better way" and took a clip from Yusei's office. He unfolded it and put the tip into the lock and waving it gently back and forth

I rolled my eyes.

"You think you can unlock it with this way?" Carly wondered but he ignored her.

"Bingo" he shouted five minutes later when the locker unlocks with a small click.

"Well done Rua" Carly cheered "where did you learn to do that?"

"Crow" he smirked and his answer revealed everything.

I shook my head in disapprove but I had to admit it; Crow's tricks proved to be more than useful today. But that was the only exception.

"Open it" I said in hurry and my brother did what I told him.

"Look at that" Carly exclaimed pointed the inside taking some papers in her hands to check them closer "He kept in there a whole file with… files?"

"Some of them are really old. There must be the original ones" Rua commented looking some papers closer.

"Look this one; it's an old file of Duel Academia when some students, Yuuki Juudai, Tenjouin Asuka and more, transferred into an Alternative Detention…" she said with her gaze on the papers as she was reading quickly searching for more "Oh and look at that. Before they leave the whole Academia where disappeared for some days with everyone who was inside the building"

"My Ra" Rua shouted, "what the hell happened back there"

"No idea" Carly shrugged and read more "they all manage to come back except one student, Johan Andersen, and that's why the others went back to find him"

"Wow, they went back to save his friend. That's true friendship" Rua commented looking some files too "and check on this one too, it says there where a dorm which used to call Abandoned Dorm, and no one was permitted to enter, because some of the students who stayed in this dorm, vanished"

"And this one too" Carly pointed another one "it's about the Shadow Realm on the World of Darkness which according to the author of the article it's a place in which someone can be trapped and… this is so cruel… accordance with the article, it presents this place as a place of punishment and prison of the soul"

"Like hell?" Rua trembled a little before turning his attention to some others papers.

"Why Yusei kept a file like this?" Carly mused and Rua shrugged in wonder.

I didn't reply; I was speechless, mostly because the strange feeling become bigger and the entire laboratory seemed to shrink and started pressing me. Something was wrong.

"What a scoop!" Carly exclaimed immediately and both I and Rua glared at her "Ok, ok" she said raising her hands in surrender "I'm not going to write anything, I promised to Jack days ago" she declared "but you know… old habits"

"Yes, I know" I muttered indifferently and turned my attention to the files.

"You are doing everything he asked you?" Rua asked but it wasn't really a question, but more of a fact.

Carly nodded blushing lightly "When he had a point, yes" she replied.

"Seeing your reaction I can say that he always have a point, right" Rua teased her smiling and closing one eye with meaning.

Carly's blush became darker but she didn't say anything.

"Did you find anything interesting?" I asked my brother with my eyes still on some papers.

"Oh!" he turned his attention on some files and immediately gasp "Look at that!" he shouted in surprised and both I and Carly hurry to see what he wanted to showed us.

"What's this?" I asked immediately.

"It's an old article" Carly muttered while her reporter's eyes scanning the papers "Ra; this must be one of the first about the Shadow Games or Death Games which ever written"

"What you mean Carly?" I asked her with the strange feeling that I'm not going to like it.

"This article is as old as the Duel Monster game is, when Maximilion Pegasus created it again years ago" she explained politely.

"Again?" Rua asked in wonder before he turned his eyes on the files "what you mean 'again'?"

"You see Duel Monsters wasn't just a simple game, and it's older than you think. I don't know a lot to explain but years ago I found some old articles; I read in them that this game was played since ancient times in ancient Egypt by pharaohs, and was a game of power and authority as they used magic and real monsters in tablets"

I trembled hearing her words.

"Is this true?" Rua asked suspiciously.

"I don't know" Carly shrugged "but when Maximilion Pegasus created this game with cards this time, some really interesting things happened"

"Such as…?" I asked but I knew her answer as I remembered some Duel's Monsters history lessons from Duel Academia.

"Such as the Millennium's Items"

"Wow!" Rua was really excited "I remember now, do you Ruka?" I nodded "Rumors saying that Pegasus himself was in possession of such an item as well as the King of Games, Yuugi Muto. Cool"

"Rua" I exclaimed strictly "those items where dangerous. Someone who possesses such an item could do terrible things. Like read other people's minds imprison their souls and call real monsters in duels which were named…"

"Shadow Games" Carly cut me off.

"Ok, you are right" he defended himself "but it's still cool"

"This is an article of a Shadow Game" Carly explained pointing the paper on the file "between…" she paused "Oh my Ra look at that" she pointed a line with one finger "the King of game and the creator of the game"

"Yuugi Muto and Maximilion Pegasus!" Rua exclaimed, "I would give anything to watch their duel… I mean" he mumbled scratching the back of his head as I gave him an angry look "it would be interesting right?"

I opened my mouth to replay but Carly cut me off.

"This is more interesting guys" her voice was severer than usual and immediately we turned our gaze in wonder.

Surprise was all over her face and seemed a little pale as she showed us another folder with trembling hands. I bent closer to Carly to have a better angle to see the papers. I felt my heart beating like crazy and my breath caught as I saw the photo and the name of the file. I blinked my eyes one, two, three times… but nothing change. I stared the same name with agony and I bit my lips. How is this possible?

"Ruka…" my brother was speechless too and I felt his hand on my shoulder "this is…" he started but I didn't pay attention to him anymore.

My vision become blurry and my mind stopped.

"Ruka!" I heard his voice from far away, as I wasn't near him anymore.

Something was pulling me away and I couldn't resist, even though I wanted to. I heard Carly's voice faint and distant. New visions passed before my eyes and my mind already ran away shouting my name several times.

"Ruka, Ruka"

"Ruka" I blinked my eyes trying to focus to one voice, which was louder than the others.

"Regulus!" I gasped watching the big armed lion in front of me "where I'm I? What happen?"

"You must hurry Ruka" Relulus said immediately "time flies. You cannot spend another minute anymore. The countdown is already began"

"What's wrong Regulus?" I asked trying to run closer to him but as much as I was running I couldn't cover the distance that separated us "Please tell me more" I begged "I don't understand"

"Just hurry" it was his only replies "I can't stay for long this time"

"Please don't go again" I was desperate.

"You and your friends will need any possible help. You are only ones who can stop this madness"

"What madness, what is happening?"

"You must find a way to stop Momentum's powers, before it's too late" he warned.

"The world is in dangerous again because of Momentum's power? Is that mean that another Zero Reverse will…" I couldn't spill the words.

Regulus nodded "You must find a way to stop it, otherwise not only your world but every world will be in the same danger"

"Oh no" I gasped breathing heavily from running. It was useless but I couldn't stop myself from trying to caught him "what will happened if we failed"

"Then the world will need a shield to stop the leakage of energy. The balance is too fragility. Momentum is extremely powerful and will become more dangerous. Ruka you and your friends are the only ones who can stop it. If you do not find the way then none of us will"

"NO!" I yelled falling to my knees, covering my ears with my hands and closing my eyes. The burden of responsibility was too big to bear.

"There is still a chance, but you must hurry" Regulus voice become distant and I opened my eyes only to see him removed away from me.

"Don't leave me!" I begged again "I don't know what to do" tears run down my eyes.

"You must hurry" his voice becomes a whisper "otherwise the Balance of the Elements will be destroy forever"

"Please" I whispered.

"Ruka!" I heard a familiar voice from far away coming closer.

"Don't leave me" I begged one more time feeling myself falling deep into my thoughts like a huge swirl pulls me with it.

"Ruka!" Rua's voice hit me in the face and I covered my ears immediately to protect them as he was shaking my body.

"Thank Ra, she is ok" Carly sighed in relief.

"Ruka you scared me to hell" my brother was in a cold sweat just like me.

"I… I'm sorry, I'm ok now" I was but I wasn't sure about the rest of the world.

Rua looked relieved for a moment before he bent over me again "Another vision?" he asked me with agony all over his face.

I nodded "Regulus" I explained looking down "he came to me, he said we must hurry. The whole world is in danger and we are the only ones…" I paused and bit my lips.

Carly covered her mouth with one hand and Rua gasped as both of them realize what I was about to say.

"He said…" I continued "we must hurry; otherwise the Balance of the Elements will be destroy forever" tears were running down my cheeks and I didn't tried to weep them away.

"What is the meaning of this?" my twin asked in wonder and surprised but I shook my head.

"I don't know" I mumbled "but we must find out. We have to"

* * *

_His friends found some strange clues, (Yusei's files and Regulus said something strange too) but they have no idea what all those information means. What do you think guys? _

_…_

_Alright now I have a question for you, so that means that all of you are going to help with my story. You guys want to put some romance in the story too? You can write the couples you want too but I'm not promise that I will use them. Also you can propose any character you want; even if I didn't mention him/her in my story so far… because more of them are going to show up!_

_…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Chrome Nagi Dokuro**_, _**Karlina101**_and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	13. Synchro summon failure

**Chapter 13 – Synchro summon failure  
**

Crow's Pov

I was on my way back home with mix feelings. I was away for two weeks and to be honest with myself it was fourteen freaking and useless days; and why is that? Because I couldn't manage to get any information about Yusei and his coma, his duel, his research, his experiment or anything related to all this. But I'm not feeling completely worthless since we all knew from the beginning that my part wasn't the most important one or the most likely helpful. But still that thought didn't help me feeling better.

At least I was informed some of the others had better luck but it wasn't something totally unexpected. If they didn't have any luck to identify some evidence in Yusei's lab then how could I find any, being away from Neo Domino city in a research trip to gather as much information as I could?

It was all Jack's idea and one of the rare situations, which I gave him all the credits. I admit it, when he wants he can accomplish multiple goals. I still remember our little conversation in our old room and never crossed my thoughts that he feels that way. How much he is sorry for his actions in the past. I was hurt too when I learned what he did and I was as angrier as disappointed. Things change after the Dark Signers since we become friends again but his betrayal still burn in my heart; not any more.

But why he had to bring it to the limits to show up that he has a heart too and tell me how much he regretted it? Same old Jack; he is still proud and stupid and something inside me telling me he will remain like this for ever. I can skip those defects of his, I think. At least he made a good work when he organized our schedule for these two weeks.

Since Aki is an expert she stayed in Neo Domino to help the doctors in the hospital and study in the city's library. She agreed immediately as long as she will be close to Yusei. Jack informed me she and the others doctors made several tests in order to find out what cause his coma or how they can restore him, but with zero success. Knowing Aki I'm sure she did everything in her power. Also I informed she spent hours searching in the library studding. There were times I was worrying about her but I know she has her parents to support and help her.

Rua and Ruka stayed in the city too. Yusei's lab was the first place that Jack suggested them to go and I gave him more credits for this. But I have to give some to Carly too, since she helped the twins a lot. It was almost impossible for them to go in his lab and search for evidence but with her help and some of Mikage and Ushio of course they found something extremely interesting.

Jack told me they found out that Yusei had a secret file in his drawer office in his lab. It was locked but they found a way to unlock it. I smiled to myself. I imprested with Rua's talent with the lockers; he learned how to open them really fast when I showed him in the past, and what they found in there was definitely suspicious.

Yusei kept a whole file of strange articles; some of them were really old as they could count many years ago, some of them were as old as the Duel's Monsters game is and all of them have something in common. But he didn't tell me anything else because simply, he didn't know more. Aki, Carly and the twins said we have to see those files with our eyes and then we will understand why words are useless.

They also said something about Ruka too. That she had another vision of Regulus but this time his warning was more complicate than the last one although he kept saying we must hurry.

"And do what?" was my first question when Jack told me the news.

"I don't know but whatever it is we must hurry and find out too, you stupid" was his answer.

So I had no other choice but be patient until I return to Neo Domino and talk with the rest about our clues and the information we managed to gather.

Jack traveled too; he went to the ancient land of Nasca lines. He visited Bommer and his siblings. I also believe this trip was good for his ego too, since Max, Bommer's little brother is a huge fan of 'the number one Duelist Jack Atlas'. I smirked at the memory; I was talking to Jack when he called me out to inform me that he was there and I heard Max's voices from his phone too. The little boy was cheering joyful.

Unfortunately Bommer didn't help us a lot. He didn't even know about Yusei's coma since he wasn't in direct contact with the outside world and he learned the news a little late.

He offered to help and both Jack and Bommer visited some other places and talk to some elders and priests for similar incidents in history and local legends. They found out many interesting things, like the legends of the stars' energy from which Crimson Dragon absorbs and many others. But none of them seem to match with our situation or Yusei's.

It was one of the few times I heard him so angry because he couldn't find any evidence. However his journey there wasn't totally pointless. He called me after a few days to inform me Bommer challenged him in a duel.

"And why this is so interesting Jack?" I asked him immediately "I believe you beat him down from the first round, but really this isn't what we…"

"Can you keep your big mouth shut you twit?" he cut me off "Of course I beat him but something else happed back there too" he added in hurry and I shut up.

Then Jack explained while I was in shock.

"Your Synchro summon failed when you tried to call Red Demon Dragon?" I asked absolutely astonished and let my jaw drop, after he finished.

"Apart from being stupid are you bloody deaf too now?" Jack threw his venom and I grunted, "this is what I said. I tried to call him but after a minute he just disappeared. Nothing more. Bommer was as surprised as I was"

"And what did you do after he vanished?"

"Nothing, since I couldn't use my ace monster I found a different combo to win" he said and I burst out laughing.

"And you call me stupid, you stupid one" I chuckled "I mean with your dragon"

He was clueless just like me, but Jack's words stuck on my head and what happened in his duel put me immediately in thoughts after my experience.

To me commissioned to find the person, which Yusei gave his last duel before he passed out for the first time. I found him and talk to him but he was more confused than I was. He hadn't the slightest idea for the problematic holograms and Yusei's weakness. He thought there was some kind of problem with their duel disks or the Momentum's power. That's a little bit of irony since there is a problem with the Momentum's power; the energy is growing nonstop.

He was Yusei's big fan and he was training to become one of the best duelists and good enough to beat Yusei. Unfortunately he lost his chance since his idol fainted and the duel immediately canceled. But when he asked who I was, and I told him I was his friend and one of his teammates at the WRGP tournament his face lighted up and challenged me the next second.

I accepted his challenge but something unexpected, strange and interesting happened in our duel. He was really good but I had everything under control. I realized his strategy and I already knew what combo I should use but something didn't work for me. My Synchro summons failed too when I tried to call out Black Feather Dragon; my monster appeared for some seconds and then vanished before my eyes, just vanished, as simple as I say it. My opponent gave me some hard time back then but he wasn't good enough. I won the duel even without my ace monster.

But something really strange is happening with the Synchro summon but not always. I call out many Synchro monsters and my opponent did the same, but I failed to call out my stronger one. And I wasn't the only one with the same problem. First it was Yusei, then Jack and now I, our Synchro summon failed only when we tried to call out our ace monsters; our Signer Dragons, Stardust, Red Demon and Black Feather.

And the list didn't stop here, unfortunately. Some days after my duel Jack call me with the strangest news ever; none of us, I, Jack, Aki, Ruka and Rua weren't able to Synchro summon our dragons in a duel. All of them appeared and after some seconds they just vanished, just like mine.

It was Jack's idea, when he couldn't call for his monster he become suspicious and when I told him that the same happened to me he made calls straight to Aki and twins and told them to duel with each other and find out if they can call their dragons. At the beginning they surprised by what he asked them to do but after their own failed effort to call their ace monsters they called him back and told him.

I don't know what's going on with our dragons and neither of my friends have any idea but we all agreed that this is something which need more research. I'm sure all of the incidents are connected; our dragons somehow connected but if anything our dragons weren't looked ill or weak unlike Yusei's. But none of their masters were ill or weak unlike Yusei, as Ruka said. I started to believe her theory as strange as it sound; somehow we are connecting with our dragons. But we will talk about it when we all being together again.

"Crow is here!"

"Crow is back"

I parked my duel runner outside of Martha's house and took of my helmet smiling as I found myself surrender by hands which hugging me tightly.

"Hey there guys, everything ok?" I asked my little orphans as I bend to one knee trying to reciprocate the embrace, hugging all of them at the same time.

"Everything is fine" Hikari assured me.

"I missed you" my little Kokoro refused to let me go and squeezed her hands harder around my neck.

"I was away only for two weeks and you are acting like I was missing for two years" I chuckled trying to free myself and stand on my feet.

"I know, but I still miss you big bro Crow" she complained purred refusing to let me go.

So I got up with her in my arms, rubbing her back. Kokoro was always more emotionally stuck with me than all the other kids and since she was the youngest she always was my soft spot. It was almost impossible to deny her anything.

"Look who is back" I heard Jack's cold voice and I turned my gaze to the front door. There he was; standing in his usual pose with his arms crossed in his chest "You are late"

"Nice to see you too" I grimed.

"Came on Jack he just arrived" Ruka's head appeared behind Jack with her twin in her side.

"After all Jack" he picked on the blond one smiling "you arrived half an hour ago. It's not a big different" and the tall duelist grunted loudly saying nothing.

"Alright guys" I said to my little orphans when I entered the house and took place in the big table with the rest of my friends, Martha and Carly "we need to talk about our research those two weeks so we will need some time"

"Ok, we will leave you then" Ginga nodded his head.

"Can we spend some time together after your talk?" Kokoro asked looking me with expectation.

"Of course we will" I stroked her hair and she gave me a big smile before she followed the other kids.

"Any luck with the guy?" Rua asked me the same time the room's door was closed.

"No" I scratched the back of my head a little uneasy "he is clueless about what happened to Yusei and nothing in his words or actions looked suspicious to me. He was just one of his fans"

"I see" he muttered "so the only strange thing you noticed was in your duel, right?"

"Right" I affirmed looking how serious were my friend's faces "and from what I heard form Jack" I gave him a peek "you are facing the same problem too" it wasn't a question, but a simple fact.

Aki and the twins nodded.

"Unfortunately" Ruka commented.

"I'm sure there must be a logical explanation but none of those things have any logic" Martha mused "but let's hope we will find out soon"

"But this isn't making sense" Aki disagreed "when Jack called the first time he didn't explained anything" she looked the tall duelist "he just said we have to duel each other and if we do then call back and tell him if something went wrong during the duel"

"Why you didn't tell them about our…" I started but he cut me off.

"I didn't want to give them a brief idea about our problem in Syncrho summon" he explained in hurry "I wanted to see if they have the same problem with us"

"And he was right" Rua declared "we duel and our dragons… I mean…" he pause unknown what to say.

"First I duel with Rua" Ruka took the ground "after some turns I tried to call Ancient Fairy Dragon but…after her appearance, she screamed and vanished; just like it was something normal"

"The same happened to Rua and me when we duel, Black Rose disappeared some seconds after I summoned her" Aki admitted and wonder was all over her face "so I call Jack immediately to inform him"

"When I saw Aki's call I knew it wasn't going to be good news" Jack stated flatly "and I can say this for sure: we have a problem with our Synchro summon but only when we trying to call out our Signers Dragons"

"Your ex Signer Dragons" Carly corrected, "since you are ex Signers" and Jack waved his hand in the air in agreement.

"Don't you think this is something important which need more investigation?" Ruka asked but she already knew our answer.

"To be honest" Aki announced "Ruka have a point and I start to believe she was right when she said from the beginning that maybe somehow Yusei and Stardust connected"

I nodded in agreement "But I believe also not only Yusei is connecting with his dragon but we do too and not only but our dragons somehow connect with each other. Starbust appeared and vanished in Yusei's duel and the same happened to our dragons"

"As strange as it sound I have to admit it Crow, you got a point" Jack agreed and I gave him a confuse look.

"And Yusei was weak" Ruka continued, "so his dragon was too"

"But since none of us are weak our dragon appeared to be in good health" Rua added

"Alright" Jack took a deep breath "we keep it in our minds and we will investigate it as soon as possible"

"This is a strange clue I must say" Aki warned "and it's not the only one" she added "Rua, Ruka and Carly found something in Yusei's lab which I believe you are going to find it really strange too"

"And interesting" Carly added "If I could write about it then I'm sure it would be one of my biggest scoops" she added and we all laughed at how she tried to likened in how important was in her opinion.

* * *

_The Synchro summon failed when his friend tried to call their ace monsters and they don't know why this is happed. How about you? Do you have any idea? I would love to hear if you do…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Karlina101, Chrome Nagi Dokuro**,_ one __**guest**__ and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	14. Yusei's files

**Chapter 14 – Yusei's files**

Crow's Pov

"Yusei's secret file" Carly exclaimed cheerfully from their discovery.

"You said you found it in a drawer on Yusei's desk at his lab right?" I asked but I already knew the answer since Jack informed me about it.

"In a locker drawer actually" Rua corrected "but I opened it" and grinned wide.

"Nice job back there" I chuckled.

"It was nothing, all the credits go to you, since you showed me how to open lockers" Rua hurried to be modest.

"Yeah, but you opened it"

"Aright" Jack said in hurry "I congratulate both of you but we have more important things to discus right now"

"Oh yeah, you are right" Rua agreed, "you see we found his secret file…"

"But this isn't the strangest thing ever" Carly exclaimed as she cut him off and both I and Jack raised our eyebrows waiting "You see in his file we found plenty of articles and others files too and all of them with the same subject; alternatives dimensions"

We left in a dead silence as our friends waiting Jack and me to recover from the first shock.

"Alternatives what?" I asked slowly after a minute.

"Dimensions" Aki explained, "you see Crow our world is not the only one out there; there is more. And there weren't few times in history when people traveled in them and came back"

"So Yusei wanted to know more about these worlds" Jack mused.

"We believe the same" Aki agreed but I cut her off.

"Wait a minute" I asked in deep thoughts "Let's say there are more alternatives dimensions out there and people traveled there too" I declared "I still have two questions; first why Yusei wanted to know about those worlds and second" I turned my gaze to the younger girl "from what I know Ruka has a gift, she can speak to the Duel Monsters spirits and she can also travel in this Spirit World if I'm not wrong, right?"

"That's right" Rua answered and his sister nodded in agreement "And you have a point Jack, Ruka is in Yusei's file too" he announced and I gasped as Jack blinked his eyes in surprised.

I turned on Ruka for confirmation but it was Carly who spoke first.

"That's true" she affirmed "Ruka's file was in there too and seeing your reaction I must say we took it softer than you" she giggle.

"Ruka's file?" I questioned again from surprise "and Yusei had it with the others, but why? I mean what is written in your file?"

"You will have the chance to see it for yourself" Rua grinned "and trust me; you will be as surprised and confused as we are"

"You have it?" Jack asked looking Ruka straight in her eyes. She nodded.

"We didn't have the time to check everything when we were in his lab, so…" Carly explained but I cut her off.

"So you took it with you" I said flatly.

"We borrowed it actually" Ruka defended herself and a soft pink covered her cheeks.

"That's brilliant" Jack shouted and everyone looked him with wide eyes; no one expecting a reaction like this from him.

"That means I won" Rua turned on Carly and she breathed out heavily.

"Alright I will give you the bet later" she replied and I raise one eyebrow in wonder.

"We put a bet about Jack's reaction" Rua explained and I shrugged.

"Ok, we will check his file later" Jack interrupted them narrowing his eyes "Something else happen while I and Crow were off the city. Right Ruka?" he turned to her making her to jump up in her seat as he caught her out of guards.

Everyone froze and their momentary silence was the best answer and both Jack and I looked them in wonder as they looked each other with meaning. The younger girl nodded.

"Ruka" Aki started "had a vision again"

"What happened this time?" Jack made the question seriously.

"Who saw this time?" I asked in hurry "Ancient Fairy, Regulus…?"

She shook her head "It was only Regulus" she explained "he came to me when…" she threw a quick look to her brother "when Carly pointed my file in Yusei's secret's files…" she paused.

"Actually Ruka looked pale and her eyes" he trembled a little before he took a deep breath and continued, "well I can't describe it exactly, but it were empty; completely empty. I realized immediately something was wrong and I ran to her"

"It's one of the stranger things I ever saw" Carly continued, "she was like nothing actually happen since she didn't faint or something but her eyes like her mind was off. She had no communication with the environment, or us. I was scared"

Ruka nodded and with this she explained everything about her new vision "…before he is gone again he answered me that if we fail then the Balance of the Elements will be destroyed forever"

Everyone in the room was in dead silence, again.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I muttered to myself since no one holds any answer.

"That's interesting, I must say" Jack mused "he supposed to help us, Regulus, but every time he leaves us with more question marks than the last one"

"I'm sorry I can't help" Ruka apologized "this is all I know" Jack gave her one strict look "I'm not hiding anything this time" she added in hurry and the tall duelist released her from his gaze.

"I want to see his file now" he turned on Carly and the girl nodded before she stand up to leave the room, only to returned one minute later holding what he asked her in her lap.

"Here" she left it on the table in front of me and Jack "I'm sure you will find it quite interesting"

One second after she left the files on the table she faltered like she was ready to faint and caught the back of her chair to avoid falling.

"Carly are you ok?" I asked and everyone turned to look at her.

"Suddenly I felt a little dizzy" she explained.

"Dizzy? Carly you are pale and you look like you are ready to pass out" Jack said immediately and it was hard to understand if he was angry or worrying.

"Would you like some water of a cup of tea?" Martha offered her help.

Carly shook her head "I'm ok now" she stated "I supposed I need some sleep, the last couple of days I feel dizziness and I'm tired too"

"You got a point" Rua agreed, "those days were very exhausting with so much searching"

"I guess we all need some rest" Ruka suggested.

"I appreciate your help but it will be pointless if you crash from fatigue" Jack turned to the reporter girl "When we finish you will go to bed" he announced with no margins of disagreement "same to you two" and pointed the twins. Rua opened him mouth, probable to disagree but Carly spoke first.

"I'm ok, so don't worry about me" she tried to disagree but Jack glared at her and she hurried to nod her head in surrender "Ok, after our talk I will go straight to my bed"

"Hmm" he hummed and picked one folder and started reading it.

I did the same and we spent a couple of hours as all together checked every article in Yusei's file. Each new article we read was stranger than the previous one. Inside we found a hand write paper and immediately recognized Yusei's writing.

"Did you check this one?" I asked and they nodded.

"It's a strange actually but makes sense" Aki explain "Yusei gather any information he could about alternatives dimensions but we forgot that he had a similar experience too"

"You are right" Jack blinked and took the paper out of my hands and started reading it "He, Bruno and Sherry, all the three of them traveled not one but two times in some kind of alternative dimension" he announced "first it was when Sherry tried to analyzed the Z-One card and second when they went into this center, the Momentum Express, where time's experiments were made by Iliaster. They fell into a wormhole, a tunnel which leads to another dimension…"

"Man this wasn't good, I remember" I shuddered at the remembrance "They manage to came back except Sherry. She got lost in there and… do you remember guys? The history changed… it was our birthmarks which helped us back there"

Everyone nodded.

"And our memories were different from everyone else's in the world" Rua added.

"So since it was Yusei personal experience it's not a surprise to see it in his file written by him. Those incident didn't spread to the public" Aki explained.

"You were right Carly" Jack muttered and threw her a quick look "this is more interesting than I expected"

"I search all of them and they are real" Carly grinned on his direction "some of them are the original ones. I must say Yusei must 'borrowed' them too from the press file center, because I went there for more information"

The twins nodded "And we search there using Carly's reporter pass and in Internet also to gather as much as we could find about all the alternatives dimensions" Rua sighed.

"We found out a lot especially in Duel Monsters' history, since all those dimensions are connecting with this game since ancient times" Ruka added "and guess what? Everything we found is already in Yusei's file; he must gather everything on his own"

"It must be took him days to gather all this" Martha mused "and must be stayed awake many nights; that's why he was so weak and tired, from the lack of sleep"

"We where three and we needed one and a half week to check on every file" Rua pointed "and Yusei had no help"

"We forget something guys" I mused, "we don't know how old this file is in Yusei's hands"

"Actually we have an idea" Carly corrected me "We thought the same, so I check this too"

"How?"

"I make a small research on the press files" She explained and the twins nodded "Yusei went there some days after his experiment started, or at least when Momentum's energy started to grow"

Jack and I exchanged a confuse look.

"Anyway" Jack shook his head "here is the last one" and pointed one more folder.

I took a deep breath; we left on purpose Ruka's file last. Her picture and name was in the front page and Yusei was marked this folder with some exclamation marks. I took it and opened it under Jack's mysterious gaze.

"Since Yusei tried to gather every information about other words out there, then it's not something totally unexpected to see Ruka's file in here" Aki sheared her thought and we all agreed.

"It's still odd but seeing the inside of the file I must say there is something more in here" I muttered checking the file.

"Sure thing" Jack agreed and took the folder from my hand to check it too "Yusei must study this file more than all the others" he noticed, "he left notes everywhere, he emphasized and circled several spots"

"Yeah but why?" I asked confused knitting my eyebrows.

"No idea" Jack shrugged.

"I know only one thing" Aki said flatly "He wanted to know about every alterative dimension he could find out, and I don't think it was because he was just curious; he had a reason for doing it, I' sure"

"You think this have something to do with his new experiment?" Marta asked and we look each other in wonder.

"I don't know for sure but I can't think of any other reason" Aki was in deep thoughts "he tried to keep this file hidden too, just like the purpose of his experiment; only he knew it, what do you think?"

Maybe she is right but I couldn't think of anything; my head was burning from all those information. The world is strange, stranger than I thought.

"How many different dimensions are out there?" I asked my friends in wonder at the end.

"I think a lot" Rua replied after a long paused, which everyone was thinking "The shadow realm, the Spirit word…"

"The kingdom of Darkness, all the strange ones which Yuuki Juudai visited with his friends, which are few of them" Jack added.

"And some more without name, which Yuugi Muto and his friends where go" Ruka mused "but I think there are all in the same dimension, but just in a different place every time. You know, a house have plenty rooms in it"

"I see" Aki mused "but still, it's really complicate it even with this small explanation"

"This is something we must think too" Jack interrupted changing the theme "Let's see what our new evidences are" and he started counting with his fingers "Our Synchro summons failed and will still be if we trying to call out only for our Signer Dragons…"

"Your ex Signer Dragons" Carly corrected him again "how many times did I have to tell you?" but Jack ignored her.

"… We found that Yusei kept a whole file full with strange articles…"

"All of them with one thing in common" Ruka explained in hurry "all the known different dimensions which people traveled in the past"

"… So it's not much of surprise of why Ruka's file were in there too"

"Since her mind stuck in the Spirit Word for a whole month when she was three years old" Rua trembled a little when he spoke.

"… And she also had another vision from Regulus…"

"A really strange one" Aki muttered flatly.

"… He told you again we the only ones who can help and we must also hurry up because we have no time to west it…"

"But we still have no idea what to do even if we do hurry" I commented still confused.

"… But this time before he leave he told you that if we fail then the Balance of the Elements will be destroyed forever, right?"

Ruka nodded "but I have no idea about this Balance of the Elements. It's the first time he mentioned it" she shook her head and shrugged.

"And don't forget about Momentum's energy" Martha warned.

"Everything is a blur" Carly pointed "the energy is growing nonstop, Regulus said the world and every world is in danger and we will need a shield to hold the energy back and if we fail then the Balance on the Elements will be destroy. The Balance on the Elements not the worlds?" she asked with wonder all over her face.

"Do you remember your last counting?" I asked my childhood friend still confused.

"Of course I do" Jack declared flatly.

"Alright" I turned my gaze on him "put those questions in it; Synchro summons failed, Yusei's file and Ruka's new vision. Because we still have no idea"

"This isn't fair" Rua complained, "we searched only to find more questions to add in our list and not one freaking answer; not even one"

"I know how you feel Rua" his sister tried to comforted him "but it's better than nothing"

"We will need any clue we can gather and our new ones are really interesting" Jack mused.

"You are right, it's a small progress but still a progress" I said trying to comfort myself too, but I found it harder than comforted Rua.

"I wish we could find some clues about his condition with the coma" Aki muttered sadly "even if there were more questions"

"Let's just hope the answers to all those questions will reveal soon" Martha dared to hope.

"Yeah, but think about it, we spent two weeks only to find three new questions" Rua sighed "with this rate we will need some years to find some of the answers"

"And we don't have time to waste" Ruka added.

Aki gasped and I sense her silence cry. Rua's and Ruka's words were cut like a knife but unfortunately there were all true.

"At least we found some things" Jack raised his voice taking control of our conversation "that means we are in a good way"

"Yes, but time is running" Ruka repeated, "we need more help"

"And a way to help Yusei too" Aki insisted.

"That's more than true; almost three weeks and still no progress with his condition" Martha grimed.

"I didn't find anything in the library and the doctors don't know what to do anymore, we tried everything we knew" Aki explained.

I sense the bitterness in her voice. I wish I could help more but she was right; the doctors couldn't do anything and we spend two weeks with a little progress. At least we found some things but we still need a way to figure them out and explain why Ruka's childhood files were on Yusei's lab among the rest and why Yusei hold a file like this.

"Perhaps I could help a little" we heard a calm female voice with a strange accent.

My breath almost cut from surprise. I knew that voice and even if I had years to hear it I recognized immediately the owner. My heart was betting loudly when I turned to face her with my mouth dry. I had six years to see her after all.

"Maybe I could give you a hand or two" she smiled and I saw my friends turning their gazes on her with surprise and wonder.

* * *

_Long chapter huh? Things become more interesting now. At least they found something, even if it was more questions; they are going to need more information and any possible help. Lucky for them someone appeared!_

_..._

_Ok, I will make a contest: the first who will guess right who the new character is, will win the right to do me a question __in a PM_ about my story and I will answer!

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one short straight question and I will give a straight answer. Ok? So the contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

_..._

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Karlina101, **_and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you like it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	15. Unexpected answers

**Chapter 15 – Unexpected answers**

Rua's Pov

A woman with long blond hair and light emerald eyes was standing against the wall. Everyone knew her already but for a moment no one spoke. We were standing there unable to say a word from our surprise; she just appeared in Martha's house and offered her help. Jeez I was so lost in our conversation that her calm voice almost sounds weird in the room. It was Crow who recovered first.

"Sherry?" he muttered astonished and he wasn't the only one.

"Sherry? What are you doing in here?" Aki asked confused.

The French woman giggled from our reactions "Sorry for being late"

"Late for what?" Jack asked.

"To visit you and Yusei of course" Sherry explain as it was the most obvious thing in the world "but I had to wait three weeks to travel back on Neo Domino since my last ticket have been used by one of you" her gaze fell upon the orange hair duelist who look like completely unprepared for this news "but you needed more than I did" she explained to him "so I gladly gave it to your teammate"

"What?" he asked with wide eyes. Man, he used her ticket and he didn't even know it?

"Didn't your teammate tell you where he found your ticket?"

Crow shook his head like fish out of water "No, he didn't" he confessed.

"Well I gave it to him" Sherry explained with a hurry smile.

"So…" Crow muttered with his eyes still on the blond French girl "that's why he manages to get a ticket" taking a surprised expression as he realized the fact "and I was wondering how he did it. But Sherry that means that you were…" his voice meaningful faded from shock.

"You caught it a little late, but yes" she chuckled "I was there too; I went so I could be able to watch your duel"

"WOW" I exclaimed immediately when I realized what they were talking about "that was great! You saw his duel live? You are so lucky, I saw in on TV but I guess nothing compared the original" I threw my thoughts with excitement.

"Why you didn't show up then?" Crow asked immediately ignoring me but Sherry flashed a quick smile in agreement on my direction before she turned on the orange hair duelist and grinned.

I knitted my eyebrows together. I think I miss something in here.

"I did" she replied causing Crow's jaw dropped.

"When?" he asked her absolutely astonished

"When your phone rang and you run like the wind out of the club to answer it" she explained without losing her smile.

"Yeah I remember" Crow waved his hand in the air "it was when…"

"I called you" I cut him off.

"Right" he affirmed and threw me a quick peek.

"Anyway" Sherry continued "I thought it would be one of your friends and I was right, so as I was waiting for you to come back I talk with your teammates. I felt thirsty so I went to the bar to buy something to drink and when I was back I saw you talking with your teammates in hurry. I was looking your back so I get closer to greeted you and congratulate you, but when I saw your face I froze; you looked like you saw a ghost or something"

"Really?" Crow asked raising his eyebrows.

"Really" Sherry assured "For a moment I worried something bad happen and I was right again" she waved her head a little sad "anyway I heard everything you said which of course let me speechless. You were so worrying for your friend's safety and so wrapped into your thoughts that you didn't even notice I was standing next to you"

A deep red color spread on Crow's face and I let a small chuckle escaping from my lips "Hmm… I… um…" Crow stammered like fish out of water and I couldn't hide my giggle.

Sherry allowed a small smile "you were in a shock" her voice was calm with understanding "everyone would have done the same, so don't worry about it"

"Um… thanks" Crow sighed in relief with his face still red "for everything" he added in the end.

"Don't stand in the door" Martha got up smiling "Came inside and take a seat. It was very thoughtful of you to give your ticket on Crow"

Sherry nodded and came closer "My pleasure, he needed it more than I did"

"Would you like to bring you something to drink?" Martha asked polite but the French girl shook her head.

"No, I'm ok but thanks a lot"

Crow offered her his seat and left the room in hurry to bring one more chair to seat down.

"You said you could help us Sherry" Aki pointed "is this true? I mean you know what is happening?"

"I do" Sherry stated.

"What do you mean? How much do you know?" Aki blinked at the blond girl.

"I mean I know some things and I'm sure you are going to find them quite interesting" Sherry explained taking her place in the table.

"Is it about Yusei?" Martha asked worrying and the French girl nodded.

"Things I believe no one knows" she added and I gasped just like many of us.

"If no one knows" Jack narrowing his eyes looking at her enigmatically "them how do you learn about them?"

"I have my methods Jack Atlas" She replied and he raised one eyebrow "and by the way congratulations for your victory too. I saw it but not live"

Jack nodded his head saying nothing.

"Pity" I muttered "I bet Jack's duel would be terrific to seen it live"

"Trust me it was" Carly closed one eye and I grinned. Yes, I forgot Carly was there as a part of her job; lucky her.

"Anyway" Crow cleared his throat "you said you know some interesting things, right?"

"The point is Sherry that everything we found is interesting too" Ruka commented.

"But if you happen to have any answer it would be quite helpful" Aki joked with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"I may have some answers for you, if you make the right questions"

"Stop talking with riddles" Crow sighed "we have plenty of them already"

"Ok, I know some things for sure and as I was waiting to come back I made a small research, but to be honest I don't know how to begin"

"You said you know some things for sure, right?" Jack asked and she nodded.

"One hundred percent sure" she assured.

"Such as…?"

"His experiment" she announced and we all gasped at her words.

A brief silence followed before everyone absorbed her words and started throwing questions.

"How do you know about his experiment?" I asked with wide eyes.

"He didn't tell anyone" Ruka added.

"I Hope you are not joking for you own good" Jack warned her.

"Of course I'm not joking" She reacted with anger and Jack opened his mouth again.

"Calm down everyone" Martha took conversation's control throwing Jack a strict look causing him to shut up "Now let the girl explain us everything she know"

"Aright" Aki started "How do you know about his experiment?" she made the first question "since it wasn't spread to the public"

"I know some things about his experiment that no one knows, trust me" her face becomes more serious as she spoke.

"Some things" Crow pointed and Sherry nodded "like?"

"The subject of his experiment" she answered calmly and I felt her answer taking my breath away from shock.

"Is this possible?" I muttered.

"You cannot be sure about that" Jack doubted her.

"Actually I am" she insisted and everyone exchange awkward glances.

"But Sherry" Crow said a little stiff "how can you be sure about it?"

"Yusei didn't say a word about his experiment to anyone, right?" Aki muttered flatly.

"You are wrong" Sherry corrected her.

"Yeah but how do you know that either?" Jack crossed his arms with wonder.

"Because Yusei himself told me" She answered and I almost fell off my chair.

"What?" everyone in the room asked at the same time.

If I wasn't confused and surprised by her words them I would probably laughing with our situation. Seven people in the room where stared at the blond girl like she had two heads or something. And to be honest right now, after all those days with searching and all the weird things had happened to us with our failed Syncrho summon and all the new evidence we found out, I swear it would be easier to believe that Sherry had indeed two heads than Yusei told her about his experiment.

"I told you I have some answers if you make the right questions but there is no need to react like this" she chuckled "I didn't tell you that the sun will raise in the middle of the night"

"Trust me" I hit my chest "that would be easier to believe"

"But if Yusei himself told you then…" Crow's voice faded as he was into too much confusion to clear up his thoughts to make a straight question.

"Why he told you, above all people?" Jack wondered, "don't take it personal but you are not a scientist or one of his closest friends"

"Don't worry" she waved her hand "and you are right. But unlike those you mention, it happened that I shared a strange experience with him" she explained and everyone exchanged some meaning looks again.

"At the Momentum Express?" Ruka asked immediately "the incident with the different dimension"

"Exactly" Sherry nodded "When I heard from Crow that night, Yusei's news" she continued "I remembered his call and our entire conversation about his experiment. Trust me when I say this, but this night hearing Crow's news I was more surprised and confused than him as I knew some things more"

"I bet you were" Crow grinned.

"That make sense" Jack mused "since he tried to gather information about every alternative dimension he could and you…"

"Get lost in one of them" Sherry finished his sentence "Yes, and that's the only reason of why he called me and tell me about this experiment"

"I see" Aki hesitated before continued "but that means I was right when I thought Yusei's experiment have something to do with his file"

"So Aki was right" Jack agreed "but since he called and asked you about your experience how you managed to make him told you about his experiment?"

"Since he tried his best to keep it quiet?" Crow added and I shook my head.

To be honest I was totally confused with all this news. It was too many information in one day to process them by my simple mind.

"I told you, I have my methods" Sherry glanced away scratching the back of her head like a little girl at school.

"I bet you have" Crow muttered causing her to blush lightly.

That was an interesting reaction between those too.

"How so? You threaten him that you will throw him from any balcony, or something?" Jack cut my thoughts making me laugh a little.

"Perhaps" Sherry chuckled "the point is that he told me more so I assure you he was investigating something really important about alternatives dimensions…"

"So Aki was right" I commented.

"He also said this wasn't his first subject of his experiment but Momentum's energy was" She added and everyone gasped.

"Then Mikage and Ushio have right?" I questioned myself before I shake my head "No way" I doubted it immediately "Yusei would never do something reckless"

"Or something would put city in danger" Aki rushed to continued.

"I believe the same but I can't say for sure what happened back there, this is something only Yusei knows"

"Can you explain a little bit more?" I asked confused.

"You mean Yusei started an experiment with Momentum's energy?" Ruka asked a little unsure.

"This is something that I don't know" Sherry shook her head "when he called me he asked about my experience into this dimension" she explained and we turned our attention to her "he want me to tell him everything; how was it, how I felt, if I saw something or someone else and more important if there was any way out. Unfortunately I couldn't able to help him, since I was unconscious most of my time there and it was Z-One who wake me up and show me the future. Also he took me with him, that's why I manage to get out"

"That was interesting, but completely different than Ruka's experience" I noticed looking my twin sister.

"And what about Momentum's energy?" Carly spoke for the first time.

She looked pale again as she wasn't feeling well. I knitted my eyebrows in wonder.

"After his questions he revealed he was investigate something important" Sherry replied "he mentioned something about a source of energy which spread through Momentum but he didn't say much about it. After my questions between Momentum's energy and Alternatives Dimensions he explained it to me" she paused.

Everyone in the room hold their breaths not daring to move an eyelash waiting the blond girl to continue.

"You are not going to like this" she warned, "he pointed a connection between this energy and others dimensions. He said the power it's to strong which started opening some kind of gates to more worlds"

There was a slight pause before I breathe out.

"More worlds, you mean all the Alternatives Dimensions?" Crow asked her with calm voice but I can tell for sure that he was as surprise and scared as I was right now, and I am a lot.

"Are you sure about this Sherry?" Martha's voice was broken.

"Unfortunately, I am" Sherry said and I felt Ruka to sweat dropped near me.

"Did he tell you anything about those doors to others worlds?" my sister asked.

"Yes" Sherry replied "this energy was too big to be controlled and through Momentum started opening those gates. The first thing I asked him was that if we manage to control or stop this energy then those doors must close again. More or less he agreed with me in theory"

"Did he tell you how he was planning to close those doors" Jack asked in deep thoughts

Sherry shook her head "He didn't and I'm not sure if he knew the way, but he said this: the growing energy can affect only humans and not objects. He mentioned something about attraction; energy attracts energy and everything has energy in it, as human beings have"

I felt the temperature in the room suddenly falls; otherwise I was trembling from fear.

"Did he tell you what the consequences are from this attraction?" Crow's gaze was on the blond girl full of agony.

"I asked the same" Sherry avoided looking his eyes "I don't know if he knew exactly because he didn't gave me a straight answer"

"The last time which Momentum's energy grew uncontrollable" Jack muttered flatly "also opened gates to other worlds but also cause the Zero Reverse. So the consequences must be extremely powerful and dangerous"

Sherry nodded in agreement "before we close the phone he told me it's better to stay out of this otherwise I will be…" she hesitated looking away.

"Otherwise what?" Jack asked in hurry.

She took a deep breath "This is my last information" her voice was a whisper "he said it's safer not to get involved otherwise I will be in danger too" she finished her sentence.

I saw Aki covering her mouth with one hand "So" I said slowly "Aki was right again, Yusei didn't say anything to keep us safe"

Aki buried her face in her hands and I felt sorry for her.

"But that also means that Yusei himself was in danger" Ruka concluded and Sherry nodded "and… he still is" she muttered opening her eyes as she realized something important and terrible in the same time.

* * *

_Sherry appeared! And she had some interesting things to share with his friends. So you read some answers about Yusei… __about time huh? After all those questions! What do you think guys, like it? Hate it?_

_…_

_About my contest I have a winner! Two people replied and they were both correct but the first was Gotta be Annoying! Nice and quick guess G.A. You can send me in PM your question about my story. Don't worry Karlina101, I will make a contest again in my next chapters!_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one short straight question and I will give a straight answer. Oh, don't ask me something general like "what is happening?" ask something specific._

_…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Karlina101, **_and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment!_

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	16. Theories

**Chapter 16 – Theories**

Rua's Pov

"Ancient Fairy" Ruka muttered to herself "she told me… that's what she was trying to tell me back then…"

"Ruka, what's up?" Crow asked with surprise all over his face.

I stared at her like she was ready to pass away with another vision but I breathe out in relief seeing her into too many thoughts.

"You realized something?" I knitted my eyebrows in wonder.

She nodded "in my vision…" she muttered again.

"What vision?" Sherry was more confused than all of us. I didn't blame her; she had no idea about Ruka's visions after all.

"Long story" Crow said in hurry "I will explain you later"

"Ok" Sherry shrugged.

"She said to me, Ancient Fairy" Ruka explained in hurry "actually she warned me; one of us is in terrible danger. That was one day after he fell into the coma"

"He tried to keep us safe putting himself in danger" Aki raised her head weeping the tears from her eyes "Don't you get it?"

No one answer her. I was both speechless and scared. If only Yusei had told us sooner.

"I knew it from the beginning; I was sure as I'm sure now" Aki continued trying to keep her voice steady "he was trying to find a way to close those doors which lead to other worlds; he tried to save the world again, alone"

"Typical Yusei" Crow's voice was full of bitterness.

"Damn you Yusei!" Jack erupted in anger banging hard his fist on the table "Why he tried to make things right alone?"

Martha placed a hand on his shoulder "he tried to keep us safe by not involved us"

"Yeah but his plan didn't work" suddenly I felt a gap in heart like a hole "he failed and now we have to do something to help him, even if we are late. We owe him"

"Good point" Sherry agreed.

"When Yusei called you Sherry?" Jack turned to the blond girl.

She stayed silence for a moment knitting her eyebrows as she was trying to count the days "A week before his coma" she ended up.

"I think we still miss something here guys" I mused and felt everyone gaze's on me "he tried to close these doors right?"

"We don't know for sure" Sherry corrected me "it's just a theory but maybe he tried to control the energy or seal it in some way"

"Possible" Jack commented.

"Alright, let's say Yusei tried to fix the problem with the up growing energy and the gates to alternatives worlds" I reviewed "we still have many riddles to solve"

"Rua has a point" Jack mused with one finger on his cheek and one more on his chin "His research began for something else and ended elsewhere"

"Momentum's energy and Alternatives Dimensions" Crow pointed.

"Yes, but think a little" I suggested "we have more clues here" I started counting with my fingers "like his weakness but maybe his nonstop research cause it. Also what do you think about his duel?"

"Apparently Momentum's energy caused the holographic problems" Crow raised his eyebrows.

"And what about his failure Shyncro summon and Stardust weakness too?"

No one answered this time.

"And not only Yusei's but ours too?" Aki wondered pointing her deck.

"What did you say?" Sherry asked with wide eyes.

"I will explain this too later" Crow answered her.

Martha took a deep breath "And his coma" she started "the first time he fainted it took him three hours to recover like…"

"Like he didn't just fainted but maybe something worst" Aki repeated the same words she said days ago.

I heard Ruka gasped near me and I turned my head. She was sweat dropping all over her forehead.

"Oh, no" she was pale completely lost into her thoughts. Even her gaze was lost without looking something or somewhere specific.

I stared at her for a moment. My heart was beating like crazy and my breath cut when I realized it. Maybe it's just another theory but it hit me in the face when I saw her reaction. Now I understand my feeling when I was looking at him in hospital.

"He got lost right?" I muttered without addressing anyone in particular or waiting for an answer.

Ruka nodded placing her hand above mine "his mind is lost"

"What are you talking about?" Jack was pale too.

"What you mean he got lost?" Crow asked as fear was spread all over his marker face and I didn't blame him.

"Elsewhere" Ruka replied and licked her lips "Yusei told you right?" she turned to the blond girl "about the alternatives dimensions?"

Sherry nodded "yes, but why you ask?"

"You still don't understand?" I asked my friends feeling my heart falling.

As time passed the more I believe in my theory and Ruka agreed with me.

"His mind must trap in another world" my sister explained and in the same time I wanted to cover my ears, I didn't want to hear the rest.

"What you mean?" tears run down Aki's cheeks.

"It's just a theory" I exclaimed quickly "we are not sure, but the same happened to Ruka when she was three years old; her mind trapped intp the Spirit World"

"But Ruka has a special ability…" Jack tried to disagree but he shook his head.

"Yusei needed no special gift Jack" now Crow was ready to cry too but he hold himself "Momentum did the job opening the gates to others worlds" he continued "he knew it was dangerous to get lost into others dimensions that's why he didn't asked for help, he tried to fix it alone. He gathered everything he could, every article about other worlds" he turned to the French girl "He asked you didn't he? When you lost there, he asked you if there was a way out. He tried to close the doors but…" his voice broke unable to say more.

I saw Martha weeping her eyes too like my sister. Only then I realized I was crying too. I covered my eyes in an attempt to hide my tears but it was pointless.

"He failed and trapped there" Sherry finished his sentence slowly "The Momentum's energy took him to somewhere else" she added.

No one spoke. My head was burning and my heart was beating like crazy. I didn't want to believe it.

"Look guys, it's just another theory" Sherry started and I raised my eyes with hope "but the first time he fainted he managed to came back"

"With difficulty" Martha commentated "that's why he wanted to go to his lab; he knew what was happening"

"Yeah, but if he did it once then maybe he can to it again, right?" Sherry glance everyone in the eyes for some short of confirmation.

"I think he can't" Ruka whispered, "otherwise he would have done it"

"I don't want to believe this" Aki shook her head desperately. Me either.

"We can only hope" Jack lowered his head.

I had to grasp hold of any hope that he could. I felt the whole room pressing me hard. I couldn't breathe and I wanted a way out.

"I need some fresh air" I said rubbing my eyes with one hand.

"Me too" Carly nodded and get up to leave the room.

She managed only few steps before she froze taking a big breath. At her sound I turned my head like the rest, only to see Carly losing her skin color for a brief of moment and fell to her knees holding tightly her head with her hands.

"Carly!" Jack was near her in zero time and before I manage to blink my eyes he lifted her from the ground and carried her in a bride style in the living room with the rest of us following.

"What happen to her?" Crow shouted confused when Jack placing her in the couch.

"Is she ok?" Martha asked in worry.

Aki hurried to go closer examining her with a doctor interesting "her pulse is weak" she said after a minute "she is pale too and her face is warm covered with sweat. Carly can you hear me?"

The reporter girl opened her eyes trying to focus her gaze.

"My Ra Carly, you are pale as ghost" Jack stared at her.

"I… I…" she mumbled and closed her eyes fiercely.

"I will bring some water" Martha said and left the room in hurry.

"Tell me what happen" Jack asked again but instead of answer Carly put her hands around him hiding her head on his chest.

He reacted immediately closing her in his arms like he was trying to protect her from something "Carly please tell me"

I looked him in wide eyes; His tone was softer as he was begging or something. I tried to hold back a giggle. Yeah Jack is a great influence for the reporter girl but Carly seems to be Jack's soft spot too. And I can say he had an eye on her, as much as he tries to hind it by ignoring her. Adults! Why they want to make their life more complicate than already is? Why he cannot just admit his feelings, is that difficult? After all she clearly feels the same.

Carly opened her eyes and looked deep in Jack's "I don't know Jack" she whispered "but I feel… I have a strange feeling, I can't explain why I have it or what it is but…" she pause and bit her lips "Jack, something terrible is about to happen" she ended up and started to tremble.

Jack blinked in surprise and pressed his arms around her tighter as he bent to whisper something in her ear. Lucky me, since I was close enough I heard what he said "I won't allow anything and anyone harm you"

I was totally confused looking my friends speechless.

"Carly, can you explain more this feeling?" Ruka asked the reporter girl, politely and I knew what's on her mind. After all, my sister has a gift.

She shook her head still in Jack's lap "it's just a feeling, a really bad one" she explained, "I have no idea why I feel this way. I was just fine and the next second I felt dizzy… like something hit me in my head from inside…"

"Like an explosion?" Aki asked and Carly nodded.

"Exactly" she agreed.

"Like a memory that just came to you?" Aki asked again and I was double confused now. The only think I knew was that this wasn't a good sign.

"I think I miss something here" Carly hesitated "something I should have known but I can't remember what it is. Something from my past which is very important but I can't spotted it" she whispered and Jack placed a hand on her hair looking at Crow's direction.

The orange hair duelist was looking at him with wide eyes and they looked like they were having some kind of silence communication.

"Like something in your past awake this feeling but you don't even remember it, right?" Aki's voice was cold and distant and she was pale also.

I heard Ruka gasping near me. I did the same when the realization hit me in full force. I looked Carly absolutely astonished. It was just another theory but it makes sense. She had a period in her life which wasn't exactly herself anymore and when she recover she wasn't able to remember anything from those days; she forget everything, every single detail from her former self as a Dark Signer. But now something from those days awakes some kind of memories or feelings inside her.

"If you can't spot it, then you don't have to" Jack advised her "we care only about this feeling of yours"

"Something terrible is near Jack" She explained "I have to keep trying to figure it out if we want to find what it is"

"Don't press yourself, we will find another way to learn what it is or how to stop it" Jack comforted her calmly and threw us a warning look

Clearly Jack didn't want Carly find out about her days as a Dark Singer. I nodded in agreement but I wasn't totally agreed with him. We have no time to waste and if Carly can help us a little then her help is welcome. But seeing him worrying so much about her and Carly so scared I think it's better if I shut up and do what Jack told.

But that didn't chance the facts; we are completely clueless of what is happening and even with Sherry's help we still have many riddles to solve if we want to help Yusei and the whole world.

We stood there looking each other unable to think what to do. Carly lay back on the couch taking Jack's hand and hold it tight.

"Get some rest" he suggested her and she closed her eyes still holding his hand.

Martha entered the room holding a glass of water with an expression full of mystery and anxiety. Apparently she had forgotten Carly's incident already, because she left the water on the table and looked her adoptees sons.

"We have some visitors" she announced looking confused "And they said it's really important to talk to you, to all of you" and raised her head to look at us.

"Who are they?" Crow asked immediately "how many visitors are we going to meet today?" he questioned himself shaking his head.

He had a point; my head was about to explode. I was ready to fall apart; too much news, information, riddles, mysterious visitors with strange and unpleasant answers, and Yusei is still in hospital unable to move. Man who knows what is going to happen next. I'm not sure if I can get more of this.

"I told them to come inside" Marta said ignoring Crow's question.

Since we are about to see them in the next seconds it was pointless to answer after all.

The door open and a man appeared with serious expression on his face; like he was lost into many thoughts, thinking something really important. But when his eyes fell upon us he smiled with warm turning his head on Crow and Jack. His face was familiar.

"Long time to see you huh?" he announced with pleasant voice "How long it's been?"

"I think seven years" we heard a feminine voice behind him "more or less" she added entering the room and I blinked in surprise.

I was confused by all the evidence and our theories about Yusei and clueless of what is happening, but seeing our new guests I was sure about one thing; their arrival is not for good and so the news that they brought with them. But no matter good or bad news the visitors brought we have no choice but hear carefully every single detail.

* * *

_Oups! Poor Carly, what happened to her?_

_…_

_Ok, this is my second contest: the first who will guess right who the visitors are, will win the right__ to do me a question in a PM about my story and I will answer!_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one short straight question and I will give a straight answer. Ok? The contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

_In the last one _**Gotta be Annoying** _won butshe passes her question on **Karlina101**._

_…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Karlina101, **_and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	17. Premonition of the former

**Chapter 17 – Premonition of the former**

Jack's Pov

"The last time I saw you was when I beat you in a duel" I answered feeling confused by his sudden appearance and pleasure to see him again after all these years.

"Yeah, you were really strong and I bet you are stronger now" the man flashed me a smile raising his hand in the air.

I did the same and we greeted each other with our typical old greeting way "But you still have the same expression" he commented, "you are not satisfied yet"

"I will be soon" I stated and the newcomer man turned to our other old companion.

"Nice to see you after all those years Crow Hogan"

The two men exchanged the same greeting and a friendly hug.

"Nice to see you too Kiryu Kyosuke" Crow gave him a small tap in his back "everything ok back there?"

"Yeah" Kiryu waved his hand "Satisfaction Town is under my responsibility just like Nikko and West"

"That's good news"

"What brings you here Kiryu?" I asked but I had a hunch about his answer.

"The right question is what brings _us _here" Kiryu corrected looking the woman behind him with a serious look.

I blinked in surprise as soon as I noticed who she is. I threw a quick peek on Carly.

"It's great pleasure to see you again" the woman spoke politely getting closer to the Psychic Duelist "Aki" she smiled shaking her hand.

"Misty" Aki returned her greeting smiling too "it's been a long time since the last time I had news from you. I thought you were traveling, how is work?"

"As usual" the top model replied "too much shooting and many photographs which leaves little free time for personal life. I wish I had the chance to sent you more postcards"

"Don't worry about it; I haven't much free time myself, with studies and work" Aki explained with understanding.

"Carly" Misty turned her attention to the reporter girl "I hope you are fine too, but seeing your face I'm not so sure"

"I will be fine" Carly replied "just a little tired and dizzy. I'm glad to see you Misty-san" she tried to get up but I gently puss here back.

"So, what brings _you _here?" I reviewed my question.

"Misty and I want to talk to you" Kiryu announced and the woman nodded in agreement.

"And seeing Carly I must say we arrived just in time"

"You know what's wrong with me?" Carly asked with wide eyes and I place one hand on her shoulder, throwing them a warning look, holding my breath.

My old teammate waved his head in understanding and I stared Misty hoping she would be able to understand my warning too. She glanced at me once before she turned her head.

"There is nothing wrong with you Carly" the top model stated and I breathe out, thank Ra she wasn't that stupid.

"But, you know what's going on?" Carly asked and I bit my lips. If she continues those questions I will lock her in her room. There's no way to let her remember the darkest days of her life.

"Don't worry" Misty comforted her "you don't remember that's all and it's better this way. You may feel confused but trust me, this premonition you have, will gone soon"

Carly waved her head in confusion.

"Why I don't understand a thing" Rua asked and I saw Sherry with the corner of my eye agreed with him. She didn't understand either.

"We will explain everything" Kiryu explained.

"Let's go to the dining room to talk" Martha suggested and everyone leave the room.

Carly tried to get up but I puss her back on the couch gently.

"You are staying here" I announce her flatly.

"But Jack…"

"There is no 'but' you need some sleep" I cut her off.

"They want to talk to you about something important. If I stay here I will miss it" she complained.

This is exactly what I want "I will transfer their news later" I assured her and she gave up nodding her head.

"Ok" she ended up and I smiled hastily before I leave the lounge and follow the others in the dining room.

Martha offered them some drinks and cookies and I took a seat near her.

"Well" I started "you know what happen to Carly?"

They exchanged one meaning look before kiryu opened his mouth.

"We do" he declared "because we have the same feeling"

Even if I was sure about their answer I still felt surprise.

"Carly was right then?" Crow blinked in their direction "something terrible is about to happened?"

"Not if we can stop it first" Kiryu replied.

"Maybe my question will sound stupid but why you guys feel the same?" Sherry asked and I glared at her before I realize that she had no idea about their connection.

"Not stupid at all" Misty replied politely "we, I, Kiryu and Carly shared the same experience years ago"

"Which was?"

Kiryu throw Misty a quick peek but she stayed calm when she gave her answer to the French woman "we all died once in order to reborn as Dark Signers"

Her words affirmed me that I was right; but I kept my thoughts to myself.

"I supposed you will explain this too later, right?" Sherry turned to the orange hair duelist with confuse and surprise all over her face

"Right" he nodded.

"Let's take things from the beginning" Kiryu suggested and everyone nodded.

"It was a month ago" Misty started "when something wake me up in the middle of the night. A strange feeling or a bad dream which I couldn't remember"

"The same period which Yusei called Sherry" Crow pointed.

"That was a week before his coma" Martha added.

"Yusei was in the middle of his experiment" Aki mused.

"And the same time when Momentum's energy started to grow as Mikage informed us" I commented and everyone gasped as became aware my words and my thoughts I supposed.

To tell the truth I have difficulty to realize my own words. We were all confused and passed from one riddle to the next one but finally some things started to go into a row. Now I was sure, I'm not going to like what they want to say, but like it or not something was telling me they are going to help us solve some riddles and find some answers as well.

"Exactly Jack" Kiryu announced, "The same happened to me but unlike Misty I immediately made the connection between my premonition and Momentum"

"You see" Misty continued "we agreed to change ourselves and bound our souls with the Earthbound Gods. Choices like this one leave marks which will always carrying"

"What marks?" Ruka asked a little uneasy as she spoke for the first time.

"Our mark isn't a sign we can show you. We can feel it" Kiryu explained "like an invisible bond. Not the best bond ever, if you consider how we get it. But it's strong and sometimes, like now, it's helpful"

"I think I get it now" Rua muttered "when I become a Signer I felt the same connection you guys were feeling when one Signer was dueling or was in danger and needed their help. It was strange like something inside me whispering the answers and leading my steps"

Misty nodded "You put it really good. We had the same bonds" she turned her gaze on my old teammate and stared him for a while "but not only with each other and with our ex cards, like you do, but also" she bit her lips and her voice become a whispered.

I felt the blood leaving my face; the same bonds were in Carly too.

"Also what?" Crow made the question instead of me.

"We also have a special connection with the old Momentum" Kiryu answered slowly and I felt my stomach shuffling from fear and anger.

"The old Momentum? But why?" Aki wanted to know just like I did but I wasn't able to opened my mouth; because if I did I wasn't sure if I would vomit or explode in anger.

"The old Momentum was the source of our power" Kiryu explained calmly "we tied with it forever and we feel its ways; every time the energy changes we feel it; but not all of us and not with the same way"

"Each one had his own way; some of us fell in there, others just died from a car accident but we all reborn as something else"

"Dark Signer" Crow muttered and they both nodded.

"But Yusei fell in there too" Ruka whispered "after his duel with Rudger Goodwin. Is this mean he acquired the same 'mark'? I mean the same bond with the Momentum, like you?"

"I have no idea. Yusei may fell in there but he didn't died" the silver hair man mused "it was like he received some help in there and manage to get out with his life"

"Wait a minute" I interrupted them, I was trying to think of something when I realize it "Bommer was a Dark Signer too; then why he didn't mention anything when I visited him?" I asked them. Maybe they are wrong on something; if Bommer was ok then maybe he holds no 'mark' and if this is true them maybe Carly… I dared to hope.

Kiryu and Misty exchange one more look "We have a talk with him as well" Kiryu mused still looking the woman beside him "You see Jack" now he turned his gaze on me "Bommer unlike us wasn't a Dark Signer for long"

"Not even one day" Misty added "But unlike Carly who forget everything and myself which I remember some things while others remain blurry memories, Bommer remember every single detail, like Kiryu" she explain "I know it's complicate"

"We tried to find a logical explanation although we cannot explain why our minds reacted with different ways with our memories. There is no correlation with the time we were Dark Signers, however we believe he didn't spent a lot time bound with his Earthbound God, or…" Kiryu paused looking Misty.

"Or he didn't spend much time near Momentum" she finished.

"So this 'mark' you mention" Aki mused "didn't affect Bommer?"

"Not exactly" Kiryu corrected, "he has the same hunch but not as much as we do" and pointed himself and Misty with his finger.

"Or Carly does" the top model added.

"And what about her?" I asked starting to get worrying.

"Carly spend more time there" Misty replied "but she recovered with no memories. She has this feeling or better say this premonition, but since she cannot remember she cannot make the connection either. It's logical to be confused and scared"

"Is this good or bad?" that was the only thing I wanted to know right now. I didn't actually care to explain what happened or why it happened to her, I care only to make sure she will be ok.

"I am not sure but I think she will be ok. She will be scared and worrying because she can't understand why she feels this way, but it won't hold for long" Misty analyzed her thoughts and I prayed with all of my heart that she was right.

"Misty called me some days after this premonition started. When we learned about Yusei's coma, Misty visited me immediately in Satisfaction town"

"We tried to located Demak and talk with him as well but we didn't manage to find him" Misty explained "and we also send Bommer some messages since it's hard to talk with him on the phone since it's rare to get a good signal in Nasca land. We received his answer a couples of days ago, telling us about Jack's visit and informed us with everything he knew"

"About Yusei and the rest of you" Kiryu said "we informed you were all here trying to find a way to help Yusei, so we decide to join you too"

"And help you using our bonds" Misty added.

"We appreciate your offer" Martha managed a small smile "we need any possible help and if you can help with any way then this is good"

We all nodded in agreement and I pressed myself to stay focus believing that Carly will be ok and safe in the next room, away from all those dark memories and bonds.

"So" I cleared my throat "what's your news? Clearly have something to do with Momentum"

"You are right Jack" Kiryu affirmed my words "and I assure you there is a great activity with the energy there"

"We know that already" Rua hurried to say and Kiryu raised his eyebrows.

"Mikage and Ushio informed us about the Momentum's energy" Ruka continued "the energy growing nonstop"

"That wasn't totally unexpected for you to know. The energy fluctuates" the silver hair duelist waved his head "you know that this up growing energy started opening some gates to other worlds?"

"Actually we know that too" Aki said looking the French woman.

"Yusei himself told me about it" Sherry affirmed.

Misty and Kiryu exchanged a surprise look.

"Apparently you know more than we thought" Misty commented, "What else do you know?" she asked and we explained everything we found out the previous days and our theories.

"Alright, you did a great job gathering all those information" Misty was impressed with our progress "but you know that the key to all Alternatives Dimensions are lying only in the old Momentum?" she throw the question but seeing our faces she took her answer before someone manage to blink.

"Why everything has something to do with the old Momentum?" Rua asked both angry and disappointed.

"It was the first Momentum which ever build and already used once to open the gates of the Netherworld" Misty explained "with success"

"As Dark Signers we served as gatekeepers to the door of the Netherworld. This door resides within the first Momentum, in Satellite" Kiryu made a long pause before he continued "when we accept our new life and following the Earthbound Gods orders we plotted to open this gate to release them. And in returned we could used their powers to revenge" he added a little uneasy lowering his head.

"That happened years ago" Crow said in hurry.

Yes, years but sometimes I'm still having nightmares with Carly dying in my arms. I shook my head to clear up my thoughts.

Kiryu raised his head smiling sheepishly "anyway, there is a great source of energy in there and is almost impossible to be control by someone. This means that if something goes wrong, the consequences will be terrible, us you all know already"

"Zero reverse" Aki said nodding her head.

"So Momentum is not just a source of power" I mused "but also the link between our worlds with any other"

"Exactly" Misty exclaimed "and the balance of the energy is slightly unstable. That means if somehow the energy increase, as now, it's very likely to open portals to other worlds. Unfortunately, from what you have said this has already happened"

"And Yusei trapped there" Aki whispered, "we must help him but we don't know how.

The former ex Dark Signers exchanged one strange look.

"If Yusei trapped into another world" Kiryu said "then you must find a way to follow him there" his words took my breath "you must find a way to open the gate of this world using the power of the old Momentum. This is the only way if we want to save Yusei"

"If we have too" I raised my voice "then we will follow him there" I don't know how or when but we will.

_Misty and Kiryu appeared! With some interesting news too__.__ Hmm maybe Jack's Pov was a suck choice… anyway, please tell me what you think about my story, did you expect it? Did you like it?_

_…_

_About my contest I have a winner! It's Gotta be Annoying, again! Congratulations G.A. you can send me in PM your question about my story. SamSam92, thank you for taking place in my contest and don't worry I will make a contest again in my next chapters._

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific straight question and I will give a straight answer._

_…_

_My thanks to: _**SamSam92**_, _**Gotta be Annoying** _and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	18. Chaos and Panic

**Chapter 18 – Chaos and Panic**

Aki's Pov

My head was ready to explode; too much information in one day, not to mention all the sorrow for my dearest friend in hospital and all the pressure from the previous days or the tests that I and the other doctors made and the endless hours in the library searching for more.

Adding a little anxiety and fear about Momentum's energy then it's impossible to find only one word to describe how I feel. But at the moment I knew only one thing; I was really tired, ready to fall apart and I wasn't the only one.

Two days have passed since the arrival of Sherry, who informed us about Yusei's research, Carly's strange premonition and the explanation of it from Kiryu and Misty with their information about Momentum. After all those new evidences we spent hours and hours talking, analyzing scenarios and many possibly solutions trying to ended up in a logical explanation to one question: what can we do to save Yusei and the whole world?

Our theories were seemed endless according to everyone's mind but in our case we definitely need something more than just theories. If this is dangerous for all of us, then we have to be extra careful otherwise we will end up like Yusei and no one liked this idea.

We put down all the proofs we had and came up with some interesting findings, which we can be sure; at least as sure as we can be.

First: the energy of the old Momentum has increased suddenly.

Second: this energy began to open portals to Alternate Dimensions.

Third: Yusei tried to stop and seal the doors but failed, for unknown reasons and now his mind trapped to another world.

Fourth: if we want to save Yusei then we have no choice but to follow him to the dimension, which he trapped.

And fifth: we have to hurry!

Everything else is still unclear like a dark chaos; what happened back there to Yusei's duel with Stardust Dragon, why his last words before he passed away was his apologies to his favorite monster, why we can't call our ace dragons too, why we have to hurry like it is a matter of life and death or what Regulus meant in Ruka's vision when he told her that if we failed then the Balance of the Elements will be destroyed forever? The word 'forever' was making me shudder all over my body. It was too powerful word and to permanent.

We were trying to find a way to help Yusei and in order to do that we have to follow him wherever he is and we came face to face with three big problems. Actually huge in my opinion and from what I saw, everyone else's too.

How are we going to travel into another dimension?

Sure Ruka can do it but only because she has a special gift. To everyone else it's look like something crazy, impossible and definitely scary. It is the same if I told them to make duel monsters real using psychic powers; for me it would be as easy as breathing but for the rest something completely strange and unfamiliar. Not to mention the danger, which a journey like this include. Look what happened to Yusei; he trapped there. All those days his mind was locked in a reality far away from here.

Rua throw a good theory from his own experience but unfortunately it won't work for us. When Ruka lost in the Spirit World her brother didn't stop calling her to come back. Rua stopped only when his sister managed to return after a whole month. And from what Ruka said she was able to heard him, but for many days she just ignoring him but in the end she find her way back with his help.

But unlike those two Yusei have no real brother or sister to call him back. We don't know exactly why but somehow Rua have some kind of connection with his sister; and our proofs? At the Fortune Cup Ruka's mind passed into the Spirit World and Rua felt unconscious too, until she recovered. I think it's because they are twins they share something more than the same birthday.

Deep inside I wish with all of my heart it could be so easy to wake him up with the same way Rua used. I wish Yusei could hear me even if he was ignoring me; I spent many hours in his side, the last two weeks. So we returned to our last solution; we must travel there even if we are clueless of how we can to it. But even if we find out how to travel to another world using Momentum's energy we have one more little problem to solve.

Where is he?

There must be dozens worlds out there, how we are supposed to find him? And even if we do follow him there and find him and save him we are still clueless about…

How are we going to come back?

We will be into another world, another dimension. Ruka trapped there too when she was little, her brother help her to came back. What are we going to do? The former Dark Signers will inform us if Momentum's energy reopens the gate but they won't come with us there. What if Momentum won't open the gate again? We will trap there forever?

I shook my head to clear up my thoughts looking away from my room's window. The sun will rise soon but it's still dark outside. I couldn't sleep; I was tired, my body and my mind were exhausted but every time I was trying to sleep I could only had nightmares. Carly was sleeping in the next bed while in the next room was Misty and Sherry which, logically, would sleeping as well.

The French woman, the silver hair Duelist and the top model stayed with us those days to offer their help. Crow spent couples of hours with the blond duelist explaining her everything about our past with the Dark Signers and any other information he thought she should have know. She looked really impress when she learn that Crow fought with a Dark Signer and with Goodwin even if he wasn't a Signer himself yet; her admiration put a huge smile on Crow's face which he tried to hide being modest.

To be honest sometimes I can see something else between those too; I cannot find out what it is, but they spent several hours together talking. Sometimes Misty and Kiryu even the twins were talking with them about the past explaining more details but I stayed away from their conversations. I don't want to remember those days.

Jack and Carly were out too. He was worrying if their presence awake Carly's memories so every time they were talking about the past he was taking Carly for a walk or searching with her using her laptop for more information or he spent some time with her talking for something else, like her job.

He cares a lot about her; he tries his best and the reporter girl is still clueless and out of knowledge that she spent some days as a Dark Signer. Of course she kept having those strange feelings. All the three of them were looked like a huge antenna, which transmits Momentum's mood. And the closer they are to Momentum, the more powerful their premonitions are.

Mikage and Ushio made a small mistake. Thanks to Kiryu and Misty we found out that Momentum's energy is not growing nonstop, but sometimes is growing and some other times is stable, if not downgrade. Kiryu and Misty have their own theories about it and I'm sure their words are more reliable than the police officers.

Since it was Momentum's energy, which opened the gates, in the first place they believe that this is the key. According to their words every time the energy is growing the gate opens, so we need the upgrading energy if we want to pass to where Yusei is, throw Momentum. To be honest their idea was scaring me to death. Every time they were mentioned it my stomach was shuffled.

My eyes started to close and I went to my bed trying to get some sleep hoping it would be a calm and dreamless. I thought it had passed only a few minutes when a loud noise woke me making me jump up from my bed looking around with wonder. Something hit outside loudly and I pushed myself to clear my mind from the remained sleep.

The top model was standing near the window looking away with worry.

"Misty what time is it?" I asked.

"Noon" she answered with her eyes still outside.

"I must be overslept them" I noticed "but why it's still dark?" at this hour the sun should be in the middle of the sky.

"There is a storm outside" she explained turning her head on me "get dress quickly and come down. This isn't good" she added and left the room before I manage to blink my eyes.

"Misty wait, what you…" I started but she was off the room already "mean?" I finished my question.

I hurried to do what she told me confused. When I was ready, I peeked a quick look from the window and what I saw took the breath from my lips. Panic prevailed outside; black clouds covering the whole sky and the loud sounds, I was hearing were coming from thunderbolts that flashed along the sky. The air should be blowing frantically watching the trees waving with fury.

I saw crowd in the front yard and immediately turned and I run out off my room directed to the stairs and to the front door to get out. My friends were all there; Jack was holding Carly's hand, Crow with Sherry near him, Misty was whispering with Kiryu and Ruka had his brother hands on her shoulders. Everyone were looking the sky in wonder and I marched toward them

"Where is Martha?" it was the first thing I asked when I approached them.

"She is in the shelter under the house with the kids and Saiga" Crow answered my question immediately.

"What is this storm? When it started?" I had a bad feeling about it.

"Couple of hours ago" Rua replied, "it was weird, one moment everything was ok and the next minute the sky filled with clouds and lightnings"

"Misty and Kiryu said this isn't just a storm" Ruka mentioned.

"What is it then?" to bad for my feeling.

"Troubles" I heard Jack's cold voice.

"Jack!" Carly was terrified "I don't know what it is but something terrible is about to happen soon"

I turned to the blond duelist only to see him closed Carly in a protective embrace "don't worry" he tried to comforted her.

The wind becomes stronger now and I tried to cover my gaze with my hands. The clouds in the sky become darker and my heart filled with terror. I definitely need no antenna like the former Dark Signers or any special gift like Ruka to feel that Carly was absolutely right; something is about to happen and include Momentum.

I heard the sound of car horns and we all turned our heads. Two cars come with increased speed towards our direction; one of them was a police vehicle and immediately realized whom they were. We didn't know many police officers anyway. The cars stopped next to us sharply raising enough dust to the already strong wind.

"Mikage, Ushio" Crow shouted to be heard in the storm "What is happening?"

"We have a problem" the man announced as both of them run towards us.

"You think we didn't notice that already" Sherry commented sarcastically but they ignored her.

"The city is in chaos. Almost all the communications have been cut off. We cannot send and receive any signals"

"Why? What happened?" Jack asked with Carly still in his lap.

"It's the Momentum" Kiryu pointed and Ushio nodded

"The energy started to grow couples of hours ago but this time the energy didn't stop growing and passed the security level" the police officer explained.

"The storm is coming from there" Mikage informed, "we try to close it but it was impossible to shut it down"

"We fear for the worst" Ushio continued with loud voice "there is no time to ensure the safety of the city. We must stop it. We hope that you can help us"

I gasped hearing his words. So Misty was right and Carly was right and I didn't want to think about the 'worst', which can happen.

"Yeah but what can we do?" fear was all over Rua's face.

"We must go to the old Momentum" Kiryu shouted.

"Are you crazy?" I looked him like he was mad "don't you see what is happening around you?"

"Trust me, we have to go there" Kiryu insisted.

Another thunder crashed the sky with deafening sound.

"Are you mad?" Ushio was looking the silver hair duelist like he was insane "you have to go somewhere to be safe"

"Maybe this is our chance if you want to pass through the gate" Misty turned to the former leader of the team Satisfaction "The portal is opening" and he nodded.

"Momentum's energy becomes stronger now but it won't last for long. The gate will open" Kiryu announced "Misty is right maybe this is our chance"

"How do you know that?" Jack asked.

"We can feel it" Misty explained "trust us we are too close in the old Momentum, we can feel everything. It's like the entire energy pass through us"

"I can feel it too Jack" Carly was something more than scared when she said that and the blond duelist nodded his head.

"Alright" he raised his voice more.

"The storm growing stronger and you want to go there?" Mikage pointed the old Momentum's direction.

"The storm is coming from the old Momentum and it won't last much longer" Misty said.

"This is too frowned, but if we have a chance then we must go" Crow agreed.

"Are we going to do this?" I was scared to death "we will pass through Momentum to another world?"

"We have to" Jack replied and I took a deep breath.

We have to go there and I have to swallow my fear if I want to help Yusei.

"Crow and Sherry" Jack called their names loudly in the strong wind "on your D-Wheels with me, I will took Carly with me" he turned to the rest "Aki, Rua and Ruka you will take Mikage's car. Kiryu and Misty you are going with Ushio's. We will meet all there"

"Ok" everyone said and we all run to do what he ordered.

"This is so reckless" Mikage muttered when we headed to her car.

"Be careful" Ushio warned her "Stay behind me"

"I will" and started the car.

Mikage was following her husband but the way to the old Momentum, seemed pulled out from the fantasy film; strong wind, dark sky, thunders and lightnings were striking occasionally with a deafening sound. We could see even trees uprooted and fall to the ground.

We arrived first at the old Momentum and immediately I saw Kiryu and Misty came out of the car and headed fast to the tall tower.

"What they are doing?" Misty shouted when she saw Ushio after them and she get off the car with us following.

"We must get inside" Kiryu shouted to be heard in the wind turning his head toward us.

"No, we have to get out of here!" Ushio disagreed.

"No" Misty yelled, "the gate is opening"

A thunderbolt fell near us and I fell to the ground losing my balance. When I managed to get up I tried to protect my eyes from the strong wind looking for my friends. Everyone had the same reaction as I did.

"We must leave; it's not safe" Mikage stated and even if she was shouting the wind was taking her voice away "Momentum's energy is out of control"

"The energy will shut down soon" Misty disagreed.

"You want to get us all killed?"

"We will be…" Kiryu started but another thunderbolt cut him off and I covered my ears feeling the sound piercing my mind.

"Ruka!" Rua yelled suddenly and with horror I saw his sister falling to the ground with empty eyes like a plastic doll.

"Please stay with me" her brother begged holding her in his arms shaking her "Ruka come back"

"Ruka?" I cried getting closer.

She blinked her eyes and shook her head "he is calling" she said with no emotion "I must answer"

"Who is calling?" I asked confused trying to focus my gaze on her; the wind was stronger now.

"What's wrong?" I heard Jack's voice from behind as he appeared with Crow and Sherry, all of them on their D-Wheels.

"We don't know" Mikage said in hurry.

"Ruka…" Ushio tried to say something but he stopped.

The earth beneath our feet began to shake forcing us to dance in the same rhythm. We all fell to the ground again and I placed my hands on my head for protection.

"Someone passed through the gate" I thought I heard Misty's voice.

"To our world" Kiryu agreed with her.

I opened my eyes and the same time I saw a great flash of white light be released from Momentum's tower into the sky and in a heartbeat everything calmed down. The wind fell, the thunders disappeared and the earth stopped moving. The only thing, which was holding me stationary, was terror.

"We missed it" I heard someone whispering near me.

* * *

_Not good huh? What happen this time, the old Momentum caused chaos everywhere but they lost their chance to pass through the gate. What are they going to do now and what happen to Ruka, who called her and who pass through the gate? What a mess! Be patient answers are coming._

_Guys I'm so glad you like my story so far, and sorry if I make mistakes, I know I make lots of them but I'm trying hard. If any of you want to help with some beta work then I will gladly accept it! _

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **Karlina101, YugiohObsessed, Guest(Lover333)**_ and _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_ for their reviews; really it means a lot to me._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! Anyway If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	19. Regulus's return

**Chapter 19 – Regulus's return**

Ruka's Pov

Voices were echoing in my head; thousands of them. I shut my eyes trying to focus but I couldn't recognize any. The only thing I wanted to do was covering my ears and I was ready to do it when I heard him.

"Ruka" he said, "finally I manage to come to you"

"Where are you?" I shouted looking around.

I gasped. Where am I? Definitely I wasn't in the same place I was before I started to hear those voices, or anywhere I have been before. This place wasn't familiar; I was in the middle of nowhere in a white endless champers or in a light space in universe. I narrowing my eyes for better focus and I saw a huge gate far away in the horizon.

"Come Ruka" I heard his voice "I'm waiting you in the gate"

I lifted my foot off the ground to march on his direction when something, like an invisible power held me back.

"Ruka come back" I heard my brother's voice.

Rua was trying to keep me with him but this time he should let me go; he wants to talk with me.

"He is calling" I tried to explained "I must answer"

But he didn't stop. I heard my friends calling my name too; they were worrying about me. I want to tell them that I'm ok but I was unable to answers this time.

"Who is calling?"

"What's wrong?"

'_I'm fine'_ I opened my mouth to say but my voice stuck in my throat.

"Come Ruka, we need to talk"

I felt something pressing me in my back and I started running away from my friends who were trying to bring me back. This time I must stay here; for as long as he can be with me. I spotted him near the gate and tears of joy run down my cheeks.

"You are not going to leave me, right?" I asked.

"No, this time I can stay more with you" the armed lion smiled.

"Why you couldn't stay with me the previous time?" I asked in wonder "the first time I could hear only your voice and the second one you stayed with me for only some minutes"

"I know, I couldn't stay for long"

I looked around me "where are we Regulus?"

"We are an intermediate dimension between your world and another one"

"We're inside Momentum?"

Regulus nodded "I had to used the up growing energy to be able to come to you"

"What you mean? You couldn't just visit me with a vision or something?"

"If I could do that Ruka then I wouldn't have to leave you so soon the previous times and I would be able to stay longer and explain you more"

"But why? Why you couldn't stay longer the last time?" I was completely unprepared for this news.

"Things" he muttered "are not well into the Spirit World too"

"The Spirit World is in danger?" I asked immediately.

"Every world is in danger" he replied and I opened my mouth to speak again but he made a sign to stay silence "you see Ruka Momentum is a portal which provides energy in Earth. The same energy you use every day. But this energy is unstable sometimes"

"Misty and Kiryu said the same" I muttered.

"I see you and your friends followed my advices and did your best those days"

"We didn't waste a minute; we tried hard Regulus" I nodded "we found out what we must do but we don't know how to do it"

"You will find the answers that you and your friends seek soon" he tried to comfort me.

"Tell me more"

"The energy up and downgrade fast. It was impossible to stay with you more time" he explained and I nodded "The first time I came to your sleep. It was a great need to warning you. You didn't have a single minute to waste of"

"I see" I mused "but Regulus why you can stay more now?"

"This time I used Momentum's energy to pass through the gate to your world and call you"

"This is the gate?" I pointed with my finger behind him.

"Yes, this is the gate"

"So we did it?" I exclaimed with wide eyes "we managed to pass?" I looked around for my friends "where are the others?" I asked feeling a pinch in my heart.

"Ruka" Regulus voice was calm and I realized immediately what he wanted to tell me.

"It's only me right?" I asked knowing his answer already "only I managed to pass"

"You did it because I called you and because of your gift" he explain "you are the only one who can hear my voice"

"I heard more voices in my head apart from my friends and yours" I mused, "they were voices from alternatives worlds?"

Regulus nodded for answer and I bit my lips.

"Since only I managed to pass through that means…" I paused, as I feared to ask my question.

He stared at me with mysterious eyes waiting me to continue.

"I'm afraid Regulus" I confessed looking away "I'm just a girl, I can't make things right by myself I can't find Yusei alone and shield the energy away" I was ready to cry.

"Even one man can make all the different in the world, as long as he can stand up with courage in his heart"

"But I'm not strong, I'm weak" small and useless too. I cannot save anyone like the rest of my friends; I was more than a burden than help to them.

"Are you?" his gaze was penetrating me.

I was too scared to give him an answer in his last question "I can't do this alone" I mumbled looking down my feet.

"Not alone Ruka" his voice was calm and I raised my head with hope "you cannot do this alone, you will need all your friends with you"

"All of my friends?"

"All of them" he affirmed "you and your brother, the female companion and the other two men"

"Aki, Crow and Jack" I called their names.

"It will require the presence of you all. The power of all of you and only you, as a team with one spirit; no one else should be attempt to go to another dimension"

"Why only us?" I was shocked "and why all of us as a team?"

"You and your friends hold more power than you think"

"I… I don't understand" I waved my head confused.

"Only you were able to master the Signer Dragons" Regulus explained causing my jaw to dropped "Each one of you managed to control one of the Crimson Dragon's warriors and shielded him as a friend, servant and eternal companion"

"Ancient Fairy is my friend" I bit my lips, she was but I'm not sure anymore, I can't call her; I can't talk with her anymore.

"More powers lying inside you and your friends Ruka, never forget that"

"I have a power" I agreed "a special gift"

"And because of this gift you are the only one able to see and hear me" the big lion explained "and I can came in contact with you only and not with your other friends"

I nodded "I'm scared Relulus" I confessed "my powers is my gift and my straight connection with the Spirit World and Ancient Fairy Dragon, but I can't see her anymore, I can't talk with her"

"I see your fears" the lion looked me with understanding "but because of this gift you where chosen once; not only you but your friends too. Each one of them has his own unique reason, a special gift like yours"

"All of them?" I blinked in wonder "holds a special power?" I was confused "Aki is a psychic duelist but the others…"

"Ruka" Regulus came closer "that's why you and your friends marked as Signers"

"But we are not anymore" I cut him off "we are not Signers"

"It doesn't matter"

"Why it doesn't matter?"

"Because those powers are still inside you, to all of you" he explained and I gasped.

"Crimson Dragon took away our birthmarks years ago. When we ride together for one last time before we spread into the world to follow our dreams" I felt tears in my eyes and I tried to hold them back.

"I know" Regulus voice was warm and full of sympathy.

"How can we save the world again?" I was trying hard to hold myself from crying "We are not Signers anymore."

"You and your friends may no, but your dragons still are"

"Our dragons are still Signer Dragons?" I gasped; that was really new information.

"You see Ruka you and your friends have been chosen once from the Crimson Dragon himself" Regulus explained "and you marked, each one with a part of him"

I looked on my right forearm, to the point where my birthmark was once "I used to have the part of his hand" I muttered "but not anymore"

Regulus nodded "and with your marks you become Signers"

"One day my birthmark appeared and in our last ride together the same birthmark left me returning to the Crimson Dragon"

"That happened because your role as a Signer was over. He released you from this duty"

"I see" I lowered my hand and looked him seriously "and what about our dragons? We are not Signers but you said they still are"

"Yes" Regulus nodded his head "unlike you humans, your dragon weren't just monster spirits. They were the warriors Dragons from ancient times and throw the ages they changed many masters to ended up in your hands"

I gasped felling my heart beating like crazy from this unexpected news.

"They were, are and will remain the warriors of the Crimson Dragon" he continued, "they are connecting with Him and with each other"

"That's the reason then" I blinked with fear "of why I can't call Ancient Fairy or Aki cannot call Black Rose? The reason why our Synchro summons failed when we tried to call them?" I asked with wide eyes "they are connecting with each other, if one of them is not well the others suffer too"

Regulus nodded "If one of them is hurt then all of them are hurt as well"

"In my first vision Stardust Dragon were missing and all the others were in pain. Martha said he was weak in his duel, just like Yusei was. But our dragons were well and strong so they just vanished"

"You are the only ones who can save your friend and his dragon. But you must hurry. Time is upon us"

"But how Regulus?" I asked him "we want to help him desperately but we don't know how. Only I can travel through Momentum and I don't know where he is. I don't know how many worlds are out there"

"As you said; a house have plenty rooms in it"

"You mean there is only one world?"

"I mean there are more connections between the worlds that you can even imagine"

"Like a huge wed?" I mused "if we manage to travel into one world then we can search for Yusei into others and travel there too?"

Regulus nodded and I blinked feeling both surprised and relief; but also fear.

"There is still one thing…" I started but Regulus pointed me to stop.

"Ruka, I must leave soon. The gate won't remain open for long"

"No!" I exclaimed immediately "don't go we still have many questions"

"Only you Ruka can travel between worlds. You hold the key to the Spirit World"

"I'm the key then? My friends can travel there using my ability?" I was absolutely astonished hearing this but in the same time I was glad, this is the answer we were looking for. I'm the key.

"There is a way" Regulus replied "but it's dangerous for you, too dangerous to try"

I felt sick to my stomach "dangerous?" I mumbled.

That wasn't good, I want to help but not like this. There must be another way to transfer my friends from our world to another without putting anyone in danger and if something happen to me and I won't be able to transfer them back? They will trap there too and the world will be… No! I don't want to think of that, I must think positive and keep hoping that there is a way.

"Ruka" Regulus pulled me out of my thoughts "only someone with your gift can travel among worlds and without this ability you cannot pass through the gates to Alternative Dimensions without get yourself in danger. You will need great strength of your own energy to transfer someone else with you and this can kill you in one heartbeat"

Hearing his words my heart stopped beating; this was far worse than I thought.

"There is no other choice then" I ended up after a quick pause "I must travel there alone" my voice was tremble just like I did.

I couldn't breathe anymore; I was scared to death.

"You can't do this alone, there is one way" his voice was calm and I looked him filling with hope but Regulus started to fade away from me.

"No!" I yelled, "don't go!" _not now_.

"You have to find another source of energy, strong enough to transfer you and your friends with safety to the other side. You must find it as soon as possible. The time is running out"

"Wait" I begged raising my hand to touch him "where we can find something so strong?" I asked and he vanished in a white light, only an inch away from my hand.

"No!" I cried out falling to my knees holding my head tightly as many voices pierced my thoughts again. But this time I was familiar with those voices.

"Ruka"

"She is recovering"

I opened my eyes blinking to protect them from the sunlight.

"What happened?" I asked confused looking around.

I was lying in the ground in my brother's arms with my friends above me looking me with worrying eyes. I tried to stand up and Rua helped me.

"The storm died some seconds after you passed out" he explained to me.

"What happened to you?" Crow asked.

"I passed through the gate" I muttered lowing my gaze on the ground hearing some gasps.

My friends, the former Dark Signer, Sherry, Mikage and Ushio turned their gazes on me holding their breath.

"Rugulus tried to come in contact with me, using Momentum's energy" I continued feeling a little empty in my heart.

"Ruka…" my brother started but I didn't give him the chance to say more.

"He said there is a way to travel through Momentum to where Yusei is, but if we want to pass the gate with safety we will need a great source of energy to open the gate for us"

My words left everyone speechless. I didn't blame them but I couldn't look them in their eyes either, not even my brother. For some reason I was feeling shame of myself, bringing them such news.

"Are you sure?" Sherry asked with wide eyes.

I nodded.

"But where we will find such a source of energy?" even Jack's voice was unsure.

"We missed our chance" Kiryu whispered with bitterness.

Everyone was looking me with sadness and despair.

"In that case we arrived just in time" it was a pleasant male voice with a hint of mystery that made us all jumped up as he caught us out of guards.

We all turned our heads both surprised and confused. Three men were near us still on their Duel Runners smiling on us.

* * *

_More information from Regulus, their dragons are still Signers Dragons and now you know why the Syncrho summon failed. But what they can do now? Good for them some men come just in time… but who are they?_

_…_

_Ok, this is my third contest: the first who will guess right who the visitors are, will win the right__ to do me a question in a PM about my story and I will answer or (this is new) can give me a theme (with or without shipping) and I will write a small one-shot story for him/her! The contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

_…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor, **_and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews._

_My special thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying** _for her help with some grammar beta work in the last chapter._

_Again sorry if I make mistakes, I need some help, if any of you want to make some beta work with the already posted chapters or with those I haven't post yet then PM me ok? Thank you all for your support! It means a lot to me!_

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	20. Friends from the past

**Chapter 20 – Friends from the past**

Crow's Pov

It was more than strange seeing their wide grins on their faces but I can say for sure that after all the information we found out the last days with all the strange and weird news, I'm ready to accept everything. It wasn't the first time I was seeing those guys but my memories maybe were on strike right now.

"Hey you are…?" Rua gasped but the surprise didn't let him finished.

"Yes, we are" the man in the middle replied softly dipping his head without waiting the question be completed "and we are here to help you" he officially announced waving his head pointing the two men were standing beside him.

They were riding the same type D-Wheel but with different colors; dark blue, magenta and white according to each one's type style.

"You are the Team Ragnarok" it was Jack who gave the answer.

My childhood friend woke my memories and I flashed a smile mix with amazement on my face.

"You do are the Team Ragnarok" I exclaimed**.**

"Yes, we are" Brave laughed to our reactions "and you were the team 5D's, or at least what remained from it"

"Remained?" Jack frowned.

"Some of the team 5D's members is not here if I'm not mistaken" Harald said "I can't see your leader anywhere; Yusei"

"No, you are not mistaken" Ushio replied "he is…"

"Missing?" Dargan completed his sentence as a question.

"Missing is a very lightly word to describe his situation" Mikage mused.

"You are right" Dragan flinched "but I thought I would be a better choice instead of 'he is in danger'"

"How…" Ruka started knitting her eyebrows.

"Do we know?" Harald asked with his calm voice again.

What…?" I tried to ask without success.

"Are we doing here?"

We stood there speechless.

"Came on guys; let's not be that cold" Brave suggested getting off his D-Wheel and his teammates did the same "After all it's been six and a half years since our last meeting"

"Long time, don't you think?" Harald asked politely.

"Really long time" I agreed watching Brave marching toward me.

"What's up Crow?" he held out a hand smiling deeply "how are your little companions?"

"They are great" I shake his hand reciprocating "how are yours?"

"They are driving me crazy as they grow, but that's the point right?" he grinned and turned to greet the rest "How you doing?" he winked to the twins and Aki.

"We are growing too" Rua flashed a smile and shook his hand.

"As good as we can be" Aki manage a slight smile "nice to see you"

"You came for the rematch Dragan?" Jack raised one hand to give him a welcome greeting.

"Why not" he lifted his eyebrows with enthusiasm hitting Jack's hand in the air "after all I heard about your dueling career"

"And I about yours" the blond duelist grinned "you became stronger, but you are not the only one"

"I think your match can wait a little bit longer" Harald approached with a warm but also mysterious smile "we have some things that must be settled first" and threw a peek to the rest of our friends.

"Big company" Dragan "You gathered many friends to help you out, right?"

"You are right" Jack affirmed "some recommendations would be good"

"Not all of them are necessary" Brave commented "I don't think there is anyone, who is not familiar with one of the whole world's top models" he got closer to her "Misty Lola" he said gently taking her hand smiling with warmth.

Misty smiled too "thank you mister…"

"Brave" he introduced himself"

"Mister Brave then, thanks a lot for your kind words"

"Charmed" Brave flashed a smile on her and with a peek look I saw Kiryu narrowing his eyes.

He looked grim like he was a bit jealous or something and I tried to hold back a giggle. Did my old friend have an eye on her? Most likely.

"We also know the former leader of the team Satisfaction" Dragan announced "your work as a teenager wrote history"

Kiryu nodded "nice to meet you" he greeted the newcomers sullen.

"Those are Mikage and Ushio, both members of the police" Jack introduced them and all dipped their heads while Jack pointed the woman near him "and she is Carly Nagisa, she is a reporter"

"Yes, I recognized you" Harald shake her hand as well "we read yours over enthusiasm articles about the members of the former 5D's team"

"Oh, thank you, that's so nice" Carly thanked them "it's really good for a reporter like me to hear that her articles are being read"

"And Jack's dueling career" Brave added with meaning causing her blush a little.

But Brave was right, his comment was more than true; Carly was Jack's Atlas number one author. I opened my mouth to introduce the blond girl near me but she spoke first.

"My name is Sherry LeBlanc" she introduced herself with iron fist in her voice.

"We know you too; you were entering the WRGP tournament" Harald shake her hand polite "although we didn't have the opportunity to meet you there, before…" he pause a little "before things become more interesting" he added in the end and Sherry looked him strictly nodding her head "I'm Harald by the way" he lifted his head looking around "This is Dragan and Brave" he pointed his friends "we are known as the team Ragnarok since our entry in the WRGP tournament"

"Now I remember you" Ushio mused.

"That's good and since we all finished with the recommendations, let's get to the point" Brave suggested.

"We are here to help you to help Yusei" Dragan said seriously.

"What?" I asked in surprise before I couldn't stop myself, lifting my eyebrows. To be honest I thought I imagined their words.

"We are here to help you find Yusei and save him" Harald reaped using deferent words this time.

"How do you know, Yusei needs help?" Aki asked.

"The news traveling extremely fast in our days" Dragan explained "especially if that news includes the King of Riding Duels"

Jack grunted loudly and Harald gave him a meaning but knowing look.

"Don't take it personal Jack" he suggested with calm voice and a hint of humor "Yusei earned the title from you years ago and you didn't manage to take it back. So until then Yusei is the King" he explained.

"I will take my title back. Be sure for that"

"If you say so" but he didn't show really trust in Jack's words which made Jack ready to fire back but Carly cut him off.

"You know what happened to Yusei?" she asked with wonder all over her face "how? No one knows except us and I wrote nothing for the press"

"We need no press to find out about him" Dragan answered her politely.

"And you said you are here to help us?" Aki said using his words.

"Yes, I did" Harald confirmed it again.

"How do you know…?"

"That you need help?

Aki nodded.

"And not only" Sherry asked with curiosity "how did you knew where to find us? You just appeared saying that you arrived just in time"

Carly nodded in agreement just like the police officer couple.

The three members of the old Ragnarok team exchanged some looks with a slight smile in their faces.

"Where else you could be?" Dragan asked lifting his eyebrows, like he was wonder why she asked such a question.

I pursed my lips. Of course they knew, just like I did, why she asked them. His wonder wasn't for her but us. Neither of Sherry or the former Dark Signers not even the police members had any idea about our past. But we did, my friends and I. The only reason Dragan and the others looked surprised was why he had to answer her instead of us.

"That's interesting" Sherry commented coldly "but you didn't answered my question"

Maybe I haven't seen her for many years but she remains severe and stubborn, especially in serious cases like now. She won't leave any detail escaping from her. That's been one of the parts of her character, which pulled me closer to her. I tried to hold back a smile looking at my ex girlfriend.

Yeah, she was my girlfriend years ago. Not even my friends have any idea for our past; Sherry's and mine and to be honest with myself I don't have a clue of why we kept our relationship a secret.

We dated for many months after the Dark Ark incident and Z-one's defeat from Yusei, until I left Neo Domino to entering the Pro. But sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I would stay in the city; what if I was never leave? Would we still be together?

"You are right" Harald smiled at her pulling me out of my thoughts "but I thought it would be obvious until now"

"Forgive my ignorance" Sherry retorted "but I would like a straight answer"

"And since I believe you are not the only one who wonder the same, I think it's better to explain everything from the beginning" Dragan suggested and his teammate nodded.

"We arrived at Neo Domino this morning" Harald started and we all turned our attention to him "we tried to located you in your old garage but you weren't there"

"We stayed all together to our old house" I explained.

"We thought about it" Harald continued "but before we started to go there, the sky suddenly darkened and a strange storm began"

"Of course we understand immediately that there wasn't a common storm, if you know what I mean and so we started as soon as possible to find you" Brave added.

"Yes" Harald affirmed his words "the storm become stronger and unfortunately we didn't manage to found you on your old home and immediately we headed for to the old Momentum"

"Since the storm began from the old Momentum then we were sure we could be able to found you here" Dragan explained "There wasn't another place that you would go in an hour like this"

"Where else would the ex Signers would be, if not here; at the old Momentum? You are always looking for troubles" Brave chuckled.

"I see" Sherry muttered.

"So we speeded up in order to come to you faster"

"We were trying…" Ruka began but she paused unsure.

"To pass through Momentum's portal? We thought so" Harald made us all gasped with his words.

"You know it?" Kiryu mused.

Dragan nodded "we do know this and much more"

I blinked and let my jaw dropped.

"We also know what you need" Herald continued.

Rua and Ruka look each other in surprise

"And what exactly we need?" Jack asked narrowing his eyes.

"You need the same as some years ago" Harald replied calmed "a way to go closer to your target, am I right?"

"But this time this target isn't an old city in the sky fill with enemies" Dragan continued "this time you need to find your teammate; Yusei"

"That's true" Aki agreed "but you know, now it's more complicate than before"

"Not that the last time it was something easy or something" Rua said "but what we are looking for, it's not even in the same dimension"

"We are aware of this knowledge too" a small smile appeared in Dragan's face as surprised was all over mine.

And not only mine but everyone else's too.

"Don't' worry" Brave chuckled "we also know how we can give it to you"

"But how?" Carly asked with wonder.

"We are able to understand some things, which others can't"

"You are not the only one you know" Kiryu stated.

"We do know each one holds a different gift" Brave grinned.

"And how do you know what we need?" Jack threw the question crossing his arms.

Brave looked at him trying to hold back a smile unlike Harald which left a small laugh and pointed his face "You forgot who we are already?" he asked and the same time the first rune of Ash flashed in his eye.

"Or which power we possess?" Dragan pointed his face too when the second rune appeared; the rune of Thorn.

"Or which our ace monsters are?" Brave asked smiling lifting the card of "Loki, Lord of the Aesir" and in his eye flashed the last rune of Hail.

"Of course" Ruka exclaimed "the rune eyes; the mark which proves that you really are the wielders of the Three Aesirs"

"Just like our Birthmarks were our proof that we were Signers" Aki lifted her right forearm and I did the same just like Jack and the twins.

"Exactly" Brave grinned.

"What is this?" Ushio was the only one who was still confused but in the heat of the news no one paid attention to his surprised.

"You are going to need our help" Harald said flatly.

"We are here to help you again. That's the only reason we came" Dragan announced.

"That's brilliant" Rua cheered more than happy.

I chuckled a little "Look guys, I can't tell you how great relief is the fact that you're here, but how are you going to help us?"

"With the same way we helped you all those years ago" Brave grinned wide "we will create the bridge you guys need"

"Even if this time it's not actually a bridge but a gate" Dragan corrected.

"And how are you going to help us this time?" I asked again and I was sure that hope, relief and wonder was all over my face in the same time.

"With this" Harald's voice was calm when he lifted his hand holding a single card.

* * *

_Team Ragnarok appeared! More old friends to offer their help. So they want to open the gate with a card… and I made Sherry Crow's ex gf… please don't fire at me about it, I'm a fan of ravenknightshipping._

_…_

_About my contest all of your guesses are correct, congratulations to all of you! SamSam92 was the first who came up with the right answer so she is the winner! Sam you can send me in PM your question about my story or a theme. To the rest of you, thank you for taking place in my contest and don't worry I will make a contest again in my next chapters._

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer._

_…_

_My thanks to: _**SamSam92**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**Karlina101**_ and _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews and _**feartheunknownperson **_for her PM as a comment for my story._

_Thank you all for your support! It means a lot to me!_

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	21. Different Dimension Gate

**Chapter 21 – Different Dimension Gate**

Crow's Pov

I held my breath waiting to see the card in his hand feeling the tense spreading all over my body. I hold my eyes wide open with great expectation feeling the standby burning me. I saw with the corner of my eye my old teammates and the rest of my friends doing the same.

"Is the Rainbow Bridge Bifrost?" Rua asked as his patience seems to exhaustive fully from waiting.

Dragan and Brave shook their heads.

"The last time you were in the need of a transport to be able to get yourselves in the Ark Cradle, so the 'the Rainbow Bridge Bifrost' was the perfect choice" Dragan explained.

"So using our three cards of Aesirs we managed to create a replica of the mythic Rainbow Bridge spanning from the Daedalus Bridge to the Ark Cradle, granting you to accessed" Harald continued "now you need something different than a bridge" and flashed a meaning smile.

"Actually this time we need energy" Ruka remedied "sufficient to trigger Momentum to reopen the gate to other worlds"

"What are you talking about all this time" Ushio asked with wonder all over his face.

"What gate you want to open" Mikage's voice had a hint of fear too.

I forgot about them; they have no idea about our new information and evidences. They came today because of Momentum's activity that caused many problems into the city. I wanted to face them and explain everything but seeing team Ragnarok smiling wide and the runes still flashing in their eyes I just forgot about them again looking the three men with wonder and seeing everyone turning their heads and attention to them too, I can say that everyone ignored them as well.

"Or the gate itself" Harald replied with a grin and I hold my breath again.

The man slowly moved his hand turning the card towards us so we can see it with our own eyes. It was a spell card like the last time, but when I turned my attention to the name, I felt my eyes goggled from surprise; that was beyond our expectations, beyond our imagination, beyond our craziest dreams. That was…

"Exactly what we need" I exclaimed filled with joy as I was looking the card without daring to turned my eyes or my attention to anything else.

"Different Dimension Gate" Jack read the name of the card with the same excitement and wonder which I was feeling.

"It's better than I thought" Kiryu muttered "but how…"

"Where did you found this card?" Carly asked turning her gaze from the card and looked upon the man who held it.

Instead of answer the three men pointing their eyes.

"The rune eyes" Aki muttered "of course; you know more than we can think"

"We will use the Different Dimension Gate to help you" Harald said with calm voice, like he was talking about something totally common and simple.

"How are you going to use this card?" Sherry asked knitting her eyebrows.

"With the same way we helped the last time" Dragan explained looking the French woman "we will use our Valhallander to upraise Momentum's energy and with the power of the Aesirs cards we will have all the energy we want to activate the Different Dimension Gate"

"With this you will have the chance to pass through the gate to another world" Brave added.

Kiryu and Misty exchange one look "that's more than helpful" he said turning his gaze to the rest.

"Since Momentum energy won't increase for several days" Misty continued "It is the best solution which can have"

"Since we are in a great hurry too" Ruka added.

"Guys I have a question" Rua said rising one finger in the air and I turned to face him "I don't understand one thing" he muttered a little uneasy as everyone's gaze was on him "you see… well maybe it's stupid but…" he started with pink cheeks and I held back a smile.

"But maybe not, so don't worry about it and spill the question" I encouraged him and Rua smiled at me sheepishly.

He took a deep breath "Well, you said Momentum's energy won't increase for several days" he turned to Misty and the top model nodded "is necessary to increase the energy that much and cause chaos in the city to open the gate?" he asked in the end I have to admit it; he has a point.

"Rua is right" Aki agreed with wide eyes "the gate had been opened before, that's why Yusei trapped there"

"And the energy never reached such a high level" Jack mused "Am I right?" he turned to Mikage.

She nodded confused "the energy was increasing, but this is the first time that grew so much" she affirmed.

"This time passed the security level" Ushio explained "that's why there was panic everywhere"

"You are right" Kiryu said "all of you. Momentum is unpredictable and the gate has opened many times, but as high as the energy is then it's easier to pass through"

"And there is a chance to increase without opening the gate, but if the energy reaches such high level then the gate will open for sure" Misty continued "but since we can sense that the energy won't change again for some days we can't be sure when the portal will reopen"

"But since we have a way to open it we don't need Momentum to do it for us" Sherry pointed and we all turned to the team Ragnarok again.

"You are right" Harald smiled calmly.

"And what about now?" Rua asked again "we want to open the gate"

I gasped realizing his question "Rua is right" I said immediately "what if the energy passes the security level again? We will cause chaos again and it will be our fault"

"This is something we cannot allow to happen" Jack mused and I saw Carly squeezing his arm with fear.

"Can someone explain us too what are you talking about?" Mikage interrupted us raising her voice to catch some attention and this time she succeeds it.

"Oh, yeah I forgot" Jack turned to his old secretary "you have no idea about our new evidences"

"What evidences?" Ushio raised his eyebrows in wonder.

"We have no time guys" Ruka interrupted suddenly "Regulus warning us; we must hurry, the time is upon us"

"Right, that too" Jack muttered and turned to the police officer couple "the last few days we found out many…" he started to explain in hurry.

"Yusei's mind trapped in a different dimension because of the Momentum" I cut him off "we must follow him there in order to save him"

Mikage and Ushio exchanged a confusion look and turned to us with wonder "what are you talking about?"

"I mean…" I started but Jack interrupted me

"We have no time to explain more" he said "but it's true"

"Momentum brings energy to earth but it's also a portal to other worlds" Ruka explained in hurry "I'm sure you know what I mean Mikage, you worked for Goodwin; you must have read my file when I was three years old, right?"

"Yes, I did" she replied with wide eyes as she remembered "wait a minute, you mean the same happened to Yusei now?" she asked with terror.

"What happened?" Ushio was still out of knowledge.

"Unfortunately this is the truth Mikage" Aki answered a little sad "you said it yourselves; we must wake him up, we need his help to shield the energy. You saw what happened today"

"That's more than true, it's dangerous"

"May I ask…" Ushio started but his wife cut him off.

"I will explain everything later" she told him and he shrugged.

"So we intend to go through the gate and follow Yusei, wherever he may be" I said and the same time I felt a hand squeezing my shoulder lightly.

I turned my head and I saw Sherry behind me looking at me with worry all over her beautiful face. For a moment I wanted to wrap my arms around her and keep her tightly in my lap just like Jack did with Carly. I want to assure her that everything is fine and there is no need to worry about me but I stopped myself the last minute. It's been years since the last time I held her in my arms and many things can change in shorter period than six years.

"That's why we told you to came here" Kiryu waved his head disappointed and pulled me out of my thoughts "all this energy opened the portal, but… we missed our chance"

"But it doesn't matter anymore, right?" Rua hesitated, looking around the tall tower and then us.

"If the team Ragnarok can provide us with all the energy we need, then yes, it doesn't matter" Jack commented staring the three men.

"We will open the gate with any cost" Harald confirmed and his teammates nodded in agreement.

"And what about the Momentum?" Carly asked knitting her eyebrows "what if the energy gets out of control again?"

"This is too dangerous to let you try it" Mikage announced seriously.

"I don't want to think about it but Mikage is right" I sighed disappointed "we can't take such a risk"

"Relax" Brave flashed a smile "team Ragnarok is here again to save the day" and winked.

I couldn't help but grinned looking his reaction.

"You don't have to worry about it" Dragan comforted us.

"We already know the risks and we know how to avoid them all" Harald announce and I breathe out in relief.

"How?" I asked holding my breath.

"Even if we increase the energy intentionally using our Valhallander" Harald explained calmly "Our Gods will keep it controllable and we will open the gate using the card and not Momentum itself"

"That make sense" Sherry mused.

"And with this way everything will be safe" Misty exclaimed, smiling.

"And you don't have to worry; we will inform you if the energy will pass the security level" Kiryu warned.

"Any possible help is welcome" I grinned to my friends "we will do it"

Finally we know what we have to do and how to do it.

"I can't say that I totally understand but I trust you guys, we can help too if you need" Ushio waving his head placing one hand on his wife shoulder; she looked him confused.

"But…" she started but he grinned lightly.

"We will let do it" he said flatly to her "if it was danger then we both know they wouldn't even trying"

Mikage nodded "Ok" she said taking a big breath "what is needed to open the portal?"

"We already have what it takes" Dragan replied politely "we have the 'Different dimension gate' card and the three Gods of Aesirs, the only thing we have to do now is connect our Valhallander with the old Momentum"

"Let's do it" Ruka's voice was difficult to explain; she was both a bit scared but also she couldn't wait for it anymore.

"Are you ready?" Harald asked raising his voice looking everyone carefully.

"As ready as we can be;" Aki was pale as ghost and her eyes widen in shocked "knowing what are we going to travel to another dimension"

I felt sorry for her. She was something more than terrified in the idea of traveling to other dimensions through Momentum and I can't blame her. I was terrified myself but I tried hard the last few days to chase this fear away and I wasn't the only one with the same reaction. Neither Jack liked Kiryu's words when he informed us about it but since it's the only chance we have he put the need above his fear. Everyone thought of him as undauntedly man, ready to do anything without fear, but I know him better than all the others. After all we grew up together.

Only the twins were feeling somehow ok with it, especially Ruka. But this isn't much of a surprise; since she traveled to other worlds many times in her life because her special ability, her behavior around this 'trip' was like her reaction to any other common idea.

Rua was less familiar with travels to other dimensions but he was ok with our only chance. Maybe he was a little excited about having the opportunity to travel there himself too and not only his sister.

"Alright we have work to do" Harald motioned "we must connect our D-Wheels with old Momentum's reactor"

"Right" Jack said "and I hope you know how to do that because the last time it was Yusei and Bruno who helped out with this"

"And we have no idea what to do" I added.

"Don't worry Jack" Dragan smiled "we know what to do but we will need a hand"

"Alright" Ushio took control "I can help too, just tell us what to do"

Harald, Dragan and Brave grinned and drove their D-Wheels inside the building with us following them. They explained how we could make the connections and with our help everything settled down really fast.

"Everything is ready" Harald was on his duel runner "anyone who wants to stay on earth must get out of here" he suggested calmly.

Everyone except Kiryu and Sherry nodded their heads. I stared at her astonished before I gave her an angry look. What the heck was on her mind? This is dangerous and there's no way to let her following.

"You are not coming" I stated to the blond woman.

"I have some experience from other worlds" she protested "maybe I can help"

"I want to help Yusei too" Kiryu complained.

I opened my mouth to disagree but I lost my chance.

"No" Ruka exclaimed and everyone glanced at her "you can't come with us" her eyes were wide with concern.

"Why?" Kiryu asked with wonder.

"Yeah, why not?" Sherry pursed her lips a bit angry but I was relieved.

"Ancient Fairy said we are the only ones who can to do it. And Regulus warned me too" she said with worry "no one else"

"Ruka what do you mean?" Aki was as confused as I was, but I didn't say anything. If this is true then I'm glad and I don't really care to find out why.

"Only Rua, Aki, Crow Jack and I must pass through the gate" Ruka explained "only us, no one else must try to follow"

"But why?" Aki knitted her eyebrows.

"He didn't say exactly" Ruka replied looking away "only that it's dangerous for anyone else"

"We don't have the time to wonder why" Jack said immediately "if he said only us and no one else then this is what we are going to do"

"Alright" Kiryu raised his voice "you will stay here, near Momentum" he pointed the place we should stand "everyone else" he turned to the rest "out!" he shouted and he turned his head to look at me and Jack "you will be ok" he comforted us.

"Atlas-sama" Mikage said with a hint of fear in her voice "take care" she added turning her head to the rest "good luck to all of you"

"Thank you Mikage" Aki mumbled nodding her head.

"We will do our best" Rua's voice was calm and strong.

"Don't worry we will be fine" Jack tried to sound confidence but without success, at least to my ears.

I nodded; I was scared like Aki; in fact I was feeling sick to my stomach and I had the feeling that if I was opening my mouth to talk I would throw up.

Ushio gave us an understanding and carrying look and taking his wife's hand they both left the building.

"If anything turned out badly Misty and I will inform team Ragnarok immediately to stop" Kiryu added.

"You will be safe" Misty nodded.

"Thanks" I mumbled feeling the beats of my heart growing stronger.

"Be careful Jack" Carly's voice was ready to crack.

I saw my childhood friend wrapped her in a tight and warm embrace with Carly returning it and pressing herself on him burying her face in his chest.

"Promise me you will come back" she begged and she sound like she was crying.

"I promise" Jack bit his lips and after he squeezed his arms around her a little bit more he released her from his lap taking a serious look in his face.

I wanted to believe him too. I look my old teammates feeling somehow weak. But I can't allow my fears taking the best of me, I have to keep control of myself and I will master my fears if I want to save Yusei and the world again.

Carly raised her head; she _was_ crying and for a moment she stayed there stared at him unsure of what to do; she looked like she wanted to say something.

"You should go" Jack's voice was colder and with no emotion.

"Come" Misty placed her hands on her shoulders and push her to move.

Carly bit her lips and obeyed; she threw one last look at Jack and buried her face in her hands following the top model. Misty embraced her with sympathy as she was leading her out on the building.

I felt sorry for her and I turned my eyes to my friends ready to speak when I felt a smooth touch across my hand. I turned my gaze and I saw Sherry near me; she knitted her fingers with mine.

I stared at her; her face was an indescribable mask. But through her eyes I could see beyond that mask deep in her heart; I saw every untold feeling. For a moment I forgot everything; where I was, why I was here, where I will be soon, everything. My heart bounced in my chest, my heart was beating fast but beating for her. I was so stupid and I realized it right now, looking deep into her eyes; I should never leave Neo Domino city all those years ago, I should have stay here, stay with her.

She bit her lips just like Carly; like she wanted to say something but at the end she shook her head taking a deep breath as she came closer.

"Be careful" she whispered in my ear squeezing my hand.

I nodded; I wanted to say something to her, anything but my voice was lost. She raised her head glancing around my friends.

"See you soon" she said with no emotion and with this she turned and left the building too.

I stood there unable to move, speak or think when Kiryu approached bringing me back to our scary reality.

* * *

_Everything is ready! They are going to open the gate. Again thank you all for your support! It means a lot to me! Please be patience, almost everything are going to reveal soon!_

_My thanks to: _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_ and _**Karlina101**_ for their reviews._

_Also my special thanks to _**Lover333**_, she made the beta work on chapter 1!_

_Again sorry for my grammar or spelling mistakes! My story needs lots of beta work ;)_

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	22. To a new world

**Chapter 22 – To a new world**

Aki's Pov

"I wish I could come too" Kiryu whispered trying to smiling but he managed only a fail grin.

"You can't" Ruka stated.

"Yeah" he flinched "but Yusei is my friend and I want to help him too"

"You already helped Kiryu" Jack comforted him and I blinked in his direction.

He's voice had a hint of sympathy and softness but I give up with him; Jack sometimes confused us all with his strange behavior and Kiryu was one of his closest friends once.

The silver hair man looked to his old teammate "thanks for understanding my feelings Jack. It's been a while since the last time" he smiled hesitated and his face became more serious again.

"It's true Kiryu" I nodded in agreement "you and Misty proved yourselves really helpful the last few days"

"Thanks, but it's not enough" Kiryu muttered "at least to me. You are going to pass thought Momentum to other worlds and try to find him too" he waved his hand in the air.

"If any of us was in his place, Yusei would have done the same" Rua assured us "he doesn't deserve a faith like this"

I nodded; I couldn't agree more with him.

"Yusei saved me in the past, and not only once" he muttered, "I owe him my life and not only" he sighed like he was talking mostly to himself.

"He deserves a happy life" Crow commented "he saved many out there"

"I know how you feel" I tried to comfort him "Yusei saved me too; we all owe him a lot" I peeked my friends and I saw some of them nodding their heads.

"Yusei was always a loyal friend" Jack said.

"And now that he needs help, I am tied up from Regulus's warning" Kiryu commented wryly and managed a weak smile.

"I'm sorry Kiryu" Ruka apologized "I don't know why he said it but I'm sure there is a logical explanation about it"

"Don't sweat it Ruka" Kiryu muttered flatly "I know there is a good reason behind his words and I'm not going to take his warning lightly" he stated "after all my strange experience I took an important lesson in my life and I'm not going to take risks like that again. Momentum is not something to be messed or toyed with"

"I don't care" Jack disagreed "Yusei needs our help, I will 'toy' with anything"

"Me too" Rua hastened to agree showing himself with his finger and both Kiryu and Crow laughed a bit.

"It's time" Harald announced calmly and we all nodded.

"Ok" Kiryu said "one last thing"

"What?" I asked immediately "there is more we should know?" I started to worry.

"Oh no, you can relax" he replied lifting his palms in the air "it's not that important"

"Then what is it?" Ruka asked knitting her eyebrows in wonder.

"You see the reactor over here?" Kiryu point it with his finger.

"Yeah, we do" Crow answered "now what?"

"You must stand closer in a circle" the silver man explained.

"I got it" Jack mused "the gate is here after all, so it's logical to stay as close as we can"

"And holding hands also I think it would be a good idea" he suggested "and no matter what stick together holding your hands tightly"

"You make it sound like something really important" I concluded looking his expression and hearing his tone "like a matter of life and death"

"Well" Kiryu rubbed the back of his neck a little awkward "it's not a matter of life and death" he muttered.

"Then what?" both Ruka and Rua asked at the same time and if I wasn't so worrying I would probably laughing.

"Well the gate will open soon to others worlds, but it's not known…" he mumbled uneasily.

I held my breath; this can't be good.

"Just tell us Kiryu" Jack ordered.

"You know the gate will open to another world" he took a deep breath "but there is a chance the gate will change destination according to the variation of the energy."

I gasped and I wasn't the only one.

"You said there is chance some of us travel to one world and the others to another one?" Jack put the question more specifically.

"I knew it" I trembled "this isn't good"

"Not good at all" Crow muttered.

"What are we going to do if that happens?" Rua was pale and looking terrified.

I bet I would be looking like him right now.

"I can't be sure but it is possible to happen" Kiryu scratched the back of his head "first make sure that something like won't happen, so stay together"

"And if it did happen remember, a house has plenty of rooms in it" Ruka said and I blinked confused "we will try to find each other just like we will try to find Yusei"

I wanted to disagree with her but I was so scared to open my mouth. I was feeling sick to my stomach and ready to throw up.

"Alright" Jack took control as everyone was looking each other somehow unsure and lost "you heard Kiryu; we will try to stay together as much as we can. Now take your places"

We all followed the blond duelist and stood in a circle around reactor. I had Crow on my right and Ruka on my left. Jack was near Crow and Ruka has her brother near her.

"Take each others hands" Kiryu ordered and I grab my teammate's hands and I held them tightly.

"Take care out there" Kiryu grimed "and come back with Yusei"

I opened my mouth but Jack spoke first.

"We will" he stated with his lips like a thin line.

"See you then" he smiled with difficulty "and take care. Misty and I will be standby with Momentum's activity, so don't worry"

"Thanks man" Crow thanked him.

"Thank you" I muttered feeling suddenly the blood running out of my face.

Jack nodded his head and the silver hair man marched out of the room.

"Are you ready?" Harald asked politely.

"We are" Jack raised his voice before I manage to blinked my eyes or feel my fear as it grew suddenly.

"Let's go" Harald shouted to his friends.

"Right" the both said with one voice.

The runes appeared in their eyes at the same time they accelerated and the sound of their D-Wheels filled the room with the familiar engine sound.

The same time the three men started on their duels runners Momentum's light become brighter and I tried to protect my eyes by closing them a little. But I left a small slot so I can still looking around me. The three men accelerate more pushing their D-Wheels to reach the maximum limits of speed.

"The Vahallander's running at full power" Dragan shouted.

My heart was beating like crazy in my chest, filling with fear; fear of the unknown. I looked at my friends, feeling ready to faint. I swallowed with difficulty when I saw the same fears in their eyes. I kept Crow and Ruka's hands tightly searching for some support; a little comfort into my emotional confusion.

I was scared to death, I wanted to yell at them to stop but in the same time my patience was reaching to an end. I was so worried about Yusei, I wanted to helped him more than anything, even if I had to travel through Momentum into another world.

"When the door to Asgard opens, the Ancient War God will rise up his magical hammer" Dragan's voice was hard as iron and pulled me out of my thoughts "the very Earth itself will shake as he appears from a roar of thunder!"

The Thorn rune appeared in his eye within a green light. I felt his voice penetrated the air like a sharp knife. I held my breath seeing him raising his hand in the air holding his ace monster.

"Descend, Thor, Lord of Aesir!" he commanded placing his card on his duel disk.

I wasn't sure if he was real or hologram but the great God was born before our eyes in a lightning storm making a deafening sound. He was huge and in his hand was his loyal companion; a weapon, the legendary hammer with the great power like no other. The God raised his head majestically and I felt the energy around the room growing suddenly.

I held my breath turning my head on his teammate.

"A fickle God is born in Asgard!" Brave shouted holding his ace card "laugh at the world while you show them absolute power!"

The Hail rune flashed in his eye with dark purple color and I prepared myself for the next occurrence and for the sudden increase of the energy that would follow.

"Descend, Loki, Lord of Aesir!" he ordered putting his card in the slot.

The second God appeared along with a piercing laugh. It was difficult to describe if it was an evil one or just a laugh with a playful cunning.

"O mighty king, he who rules over the Heavens circling the Northern Stars!" Harald voice was loud, calm and serious raising his card in his hand "The time has now come to show your mighty self! He who reins the world ordained by the Gods! The highest of all beings!"

The last rune of Ash flashed in his eye in a blue light and placed his card in his duel runner's disk "Supreme Rules! Odin, Father of the Aesir!" he called him out his stronger monster.

This time I was unable to think any proper word to describe how magnificent he was. My heart was ready to explode in every heartbeat. Momentum's waves seemed endless and all this energy was driving my mind into madness.

The three Lords of Aesir was called out by their masters. The air in the room became heavier, it was harder to breathe and I felt the energy be derived from Momentum and diffuse evenly in all directions with great speed. In each wave of energy I was feeling my eyes blinded by a bright light. It was more than difficult to keep them open any more.

"Momentum is the power controlled by humanity" Harald stated and I felt his voice, it was colder than ice and sharper than a knife "we will use everything we've got to utilize it"

Each one of the three Lords raised one hand above Momentum creating a huge marble of their own energy, which leaded down, crashing it on Momentum in an attempt to keep it controllable. All this light was making my vision a bluer area with nothing but whiteness everywhere.

"It's time to open the gate" Harald announced "which connects us to every world in the universe" I saw him raising the spell card in the air feeling my heart beating like crazy, ready to jumped out of my body.

This is it; now it's time. I found it hard to breathe let alone swallow and I clenched my teeth in a desperate attempt to chase away every negative thought.

Their eyes flashed more power and light and I held my breath preparing myself for the unbelievable. Momentum's energy appeared above us in a great bright light, incapable enough to get me blind. I felt something strong and indescribability pressing me hard all over my body and my blood run through my body cold and warm in the same time.

I held Ruka's and Crow's hand tighter trying to overtake my fears for what was next. I feel her fingers pressing hard on mine and for a moment I thought I was one with them; I felt their heartbeat echoing hard on my own body like we were all sharing the same heart.

My mind was penetrated into theirs feeling their thoughts; the same fears for the strange unknown worlds, the same passion, the same desire to save our last companion.

The same bonds Yusei's given us now were lying within us. We share the same body, the same heart, the same mind. Even our breaths were the same, synchronized to the last second. We were one; I wasn't alone into this and I will never be. I will always having my dear friends by my side. I have no reason to be scared anymore. For one crazy moment I thought my mind played tricks on me, because I gained this strange sense that not only I and my friends were here sharing the same heart but Yusei also; he is our bonds after all.

I stood there, we all stood there and our hearts were beating in the same rhythm, dancing in Momentum's waves of energy, they were crashing on us like free horses in large green valleys of nature's peace. I tried hard to keep my eyes opened just like the rest of my old teammates. I wanted to see everything; I wanted to see the portal opening revealing all the possibilities of the worlds.

Odin raised his hand holding the white light like it was something touchable leading the energy into the sky. The other two Gods followed his lead making energy looking like a toy in their hands. It was the first time in my whole life which I was living such a feeling. This must be the premonition of the former Dark Signer because I was feeling the energy passing through my body upraising rapidly.

I could only see a white light around me. I couldn't see of anything else; not even my friends even if I was holding tightly their hands. But even if I wasn't able to see them I could still feel them near me; their breath was my breath which provides oxygen to my body allowing it to continue to stand firm and my heart was their heart too and with the same heartbeat we all sheared, no fear was within us anymore. We chased it away using our bonds of eternal friendship.

"Different Dimension Gate" I heard Harald's voice echoing everywhere "Open now!"

The bright light become brighter and I squeezed my friend's hands trying to focus my gaze into the endless white energy feeling all of them holding our breath. My vision became clearer feeling myself flying into the space and the only fixed support was the hands of my friends which I was holding like a matter of life and death. For a moment I thought I saw a huge gate far away into the endless white color and the same time the gate flies over me, or I to it; I wasn't sure if I was moving or the space around me did.

I saw the gate, I felt the energy passing through my whole body taking away our breath and for only one split of second my heart stopped beating as we all passed from one world to another.

I thought I was crazy or something because the same moment we pass through the gate I had a strange feeling in my heart, like a pinch of warning. We weren't welcome into this world; we entered without permission, like unexpected guests. But the stranger feeling of all was something scarier but also some kind of familiar. We may be unwelcome here but something was greeting us like an old sensation knowing who we are or what we want.

"From now on it's up to you" I heard Harald calm voice from far away.

I couldn't manage to think of his worlds when I was feeling a fall. I was falling, we were all falling and I left my friends' hands hearing a scream escaping my lips at the same time that my body hit something hard and extremely hot. I shouted 'my eyes', as my palms and my knees pierced from something, which from the touch, appeared to be earth or sand.

I opened my eyes only to realize that I was still blind from a bright light. After some seconds I realize I was just veiled from sun light. I cover my gaze looking around as my eyes started adjusting with the new environment.

I tried to stand up on my feet feeling a little dizzy. My head was still spinning and I tried to focus my gaze. When my eyes manage to give me the first images, I blinked getting real wide-eyed and I tucked a stray hair behind my ear, taking an examination look around.

"Where the heck are we?" I asked, in the end unable to understand.

"We are in the middle of a desert in the middle of nowhere" Crow described, confused at what we saw and I agreed with him with all of my heart.

"What is this place?" I asked knowing that my friends probable were thinking the same.

"Oh no" I heard Ruka cry and I felt my hart falling as ice flowed in my veins instead of blood.

I turned my head in her direction. She was on her knees looking around and fear was written all over her face. I followed her gaze looking around and I gasped feeling thousand needles piercing my heart. I cover my mouth.

"Where is Rua?" Crow's voice reflected all the emotions that he was obviously feeling.

"And Jack?" I added feeling my mouth dry and my heart was empty from every single emotion.

* * *

_Oups! They passed through but… where is Rua and Jack?_

_My thanks to: _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**Seeker Heart**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**Gotta be Annoying **_and _**Karlina101**_ for their reviews and _**feartheunknownperson **_for her PM._

_My special thanks to: _**Shadow Queen Darkness** **Warrior**_ for her beta work._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	23. The desert

**Chapter 23 – The desert**

Crow's Pov

"Where are they?" Aki asked with fear all over her face "Ruka where is your brother and Jack?"

We both turned on Ruka with worry; she was the only one with some experience from traveling to other dimensions but now she looked around her with the same expression of wonder that Aki and probably I, had.

She took a deep breath trying to hold back some tears, which I saw clearly in her eyes, staying quiet.

"Ruka…?" I prompted but I lost my voice.

The youngest girl suddenly reacted with a strange way; she turned her head around looking carefully before she jumped up to her feet in zero time turning fully her body looking across the region. The only thing that was in our visual field was an endless desert with a bright sunlight.

"RUA!" she shouted as loud as she could and I covered my ears with my hands.

A long pause followed where no one spoke or moved, until Aki reached closer to her.

"He is not here Ruka" Aki tried to comforted her placing one hand on her shoulder.

I scanned the area feeling compactly lost when I notice the strangest thing ever. When I looked up the sky I felt my jaw dropped. My eyes must be tricking me; there wasn't only one sun above us but three of them in forming a triangle. I was more than confused and speechless.

"No" Ruka whispered and I turned my attention on her.

I got ready to say something encouraging and comforting but when she turned her head to face us, I petrified seeing the expression on her face. It was hard with determination and eyes capable enough to unleash flames. Where is the little shy Ruka which I knew? Definitely not around here, because she looked much older now and even the way she stood was different. Her face was serious and emerged an air of power.

"He is not here" her voice was difficult to describe "neither Jack" she turned fully toward us.

"This isn't good" I muttered.

"I lost Rua's hand at the intermediate dimension of the gate" Ruka explained "I think the same happened to you Crow, with Jack"

I nodded "I felt like I was flying or something" I mused "we both tried to stay in touch but it was a moment which I felt his hand slipped away and I lost it"

"We have to find them" Ruka hurried to say looking around again.

"I can't see them around here" I scanned the area putting one hand to protect my eyes from the sunlight "I can't see Yusei either" I added disappointed.

"What did you expect Crow?" Ruka raised her eyebrows in wonder.

I looked at her confused "I don't know exactly" I confessed "it's my first travel into another world. I guess no one is here"

"I agree with Crow" Aki glanced at Ruka's direction "I guess both of Jack and Rua pass thought the gate too, but into another world, right?"

"Maybe" Ruka sighed with a hint of sadness "Kiryu warning us about it and he was absolutely right. Now we have to find them too"

"But they are not around here, neither Yusei" I mused "so, we have to travel to another world now?" I asked confused.

"It's not that easy" Ruka replied a little disappointed.

Aki gave her one more confused look.

"Sure they are not somewhere to be seen right now, but except the fact that we must find the way to travel to another world, you have to know Crow that because none of them are not close, we have conclude immediately they are not in this dimension" she explained.

"So I guess we have to get out of this desert and try to find the others?" Aki wondered "or Yusei" she added.

"Maybe Rua and Jack be landed elsewhere in the desert of this world or somewhere else in _this_ world" I wondered.

"Hmm" Ruka hummed "possible" she ended up.

"Any idea which direction we have to take?" I asked looking around again.

"Nope" Ruka chuckled "no idea"

I stared at her for a while. She wasn't scare like Aki and myself from being in a place like this; she looked like she was worrying only about Rua and Jack.

"Everything looks the same, so…" Aki's voice died allusive.

"Yes" I nodded "and this sun is annoying and burning like hell. I can't wait to get myself in a darker place and I don't know if you noticed but there are three suns instead of one"

"I _did_ notice but I have seen many strange things the last few days" Aki said "so I feel I can accept everything"

"Ruka" I turned to her "have you ever been here before?"

"No" she shook her head "it's the first time and I have no idea what is this place. Just peak a direction and…" she tried to say something but a strange sound cut her off and immediately we looked around trying to find out form where the sound comes.

"In the sky" Aki pointed with one finger.

I lifted my eyes only to see a small black spot which was moving fast along the sky like it was flying.

"This can be good" Ruka muttered.

"Why?" I looked her confused.

She opened her mouth to reply but what we heard next made her words unnecessary. It was a creepy scream with a hint of menace and I shuddered at the sound.

"What is this thing?" I wondered but in the same time I wasn't sure if I wanted to know the answer.

The black spot flied toward us and I could see the huge winks. Only when this thing came closer I manage to realize from the long hair, that was a she and looked like a human; but human with winks? I tried to focus my gaze but still I couldn't figure it out.

"It's getting closer" I noticed "what is it?"

"It's a Harpie Lady" Aki said in the end absolutely astonished "but how…?"

"This is a duel monster spirit" I exclaimed in the same surprise as she was when I realized she was right.

"And trust me" Ruka shouted "this isn't a hologram"

I found it hard to believe it "this thing is real?" I asked her even if she was gave me the answer already.

The Harpie Lady screamed again.

"We are not on Earth anymore Crow" Ruka pointed the obvious "here everything is possible"

"And is it possible the Harpie Lady want to attack us?" Aki asked with wide eyes and I realized why.

The duel monster spirit was flying making circus above us, like she was examining us before the final attack.

"Is this good or bad?" I asked with my eyes still on her.

"She looks like she is hunting or something" Ruka mused.

"And something is telling me that we are the meal" I said with fear and angry, taking a deep breath.

"I'm not sure about it" Ruka disagreed "Look" and she lifted one hand pointing with one finger at the opposite direction.

It was another monster which appeared in the sky and headed to our direction and somehow it looks familiar. I wasn't sure because of the distant but we didn't have time to think about it or trying to figure out what monster is. Only one thing was matter: two monsters, double troubles.

"We better run" I suggested.

"To where?" Aki asked immediately and I couldn't but agree with her "we are in the middle of a vast desert"

The Harpie lady screamed louder and I didn't want to stay here to see what the other monster is going to do.

"Kuri, Kuri" I heard a strange voice.

"Kuribon" Ruka mused "you know what we have to do?"

"My Ra!" I exclaimed "what else are we going to see next?"

"Kuri, Kuri" the furry ball said and Ruka nodded.

"You understand what he said?" Aki asked but the youngest girl ignored her.

Ruka pulled out her deck, picked one card and raised it in the air "Sunlight Unicorn" she shouted and to our surprise her duel monster appeared before our eyes.

"Leave it to me Ruka" Sunlight Unicorn said.

"Attack to the Harpie Lady!" Ruka ordered and Sunlight Unicorn hunted her to fly away.

"I will be standby" Sunlight Unicorn informed and disappeared in his card.

After the first shock both Aki and I turned to Ruka, which stood there with a light smile on her lips with Kiribon near her shoulder.

"Alright" I muttered "now I have seen everything"

"I think I get it know. This thing is real so our monster can be real too; that's why we can see Kuribon" Aki explained her thoughts and I nodded as I caught the meaning.

"And Sunlight Unicorn has 1.800 atk points" I added "Harpie Lady has 1.300, so he beat her easily"

"Kuribon said the same" Ruka commented and the fuzzy ball closed its eyes happily.

We didn't manage to enjoy the moment enough, when another scream was heard. The Harpie Lady appeared again and this time she look pissed off. Ruka reacted in zero time and called Sunlight Unicorn again but this time something else happened.

The Harpie Lady shined in a bright light and for a moment I thought I imagine it. The next minute I was looking three Harpie Ladies instead of one. I rubbed my eyes but what I was looking was real. She becomes Harpie Lady Sisters and starts to beat down Sunlight Unicorn.

"Definitely not good" I muttered seeing Sunlight Unicorn receded and the three Sisters flying after him.

"Oh, oh" Ruka whispered.

"We need a stronger monster" Aki said and I pull out my deck immediately, trying to find one.

"Wait!" Ruka's voice made me froze in my place lifting my gaze.

"What?"

"Look" she pointed with a tremble voice.

I turned my eyes and my jaw dropped. It was the other monster; now was close enough to recognize it. _Is this possible_? The monster attacked the three sisters which flied back to avoid his attack screaming loudly with anger.

"Did you see that?" I asked slowly with really wide eyes.

Both of the girls nodded.

"It's Junk Warrior…" Aki mumbled "it's Yusei's monster"

The Junk Warrior attacked the Harpie Lady Sisters again making them took flight before the attack reaches and disappeared them into a white lightning. The next time Junk Warrior faded and disappeared too.

"Is that mean Yusei is around here?" Aki asked with hope and we all turned our heads to every direction looking carefully "I can't see him" she sighed sadly.

"Let's get moving" I suggested "those three suns making my dizzy and its better if we try to find a way out of this desert"

We started walking under the hot suns and for a long time no one spoke.

"Well" I broke the silence after a couple of hours of walking into the desert "did any of you have any idea of what happened back there?"

"The monsters here are real, even without Psychic powers like mine" Aki muttered.

"At least we are not alone it this aggressive place" I frowned "we can call any of our monster to defense ourselves"

"And I can't tell you how happy I am about it" Aki sighed looking relieved.

"Can we?" Ruka threw the question with a hint of sarcasm, looking her deck.

"Ruka…?"

"Can we call any of our monsters?" she muttered still looking her deck "I wonder" she mused and picked one more card "Ancient Fairy Dragon" she shouted.

Nothing happened this time. No monster appeared.

"Still nothing with our dragons" Aki muttered disappointed.

"Since Stardust is still missing along with his master" Ruka sighted "Regulus explained to me why we can't call them out, but since we are not on Earth anymore I just thought maybe we could now"

"Can you explain everything he told you?" Aki asked and Ruka nodded.

She started to explain what happened back there, from the moment he called for her to the time she woke up again as we kept walking into the desert.

"That make sense" Aki commented after she finished "they are connect with each other since all of them are Crimson Dragon's warriors. And in Ruka's nightmare they were suffer for his lost companion"

"Did Regulus refer anything else about our powers, which we posses?" I asked the youngest girl "because the only powers I see over here are Aki's and yours"

"Hmmm" Ruka hummed into deep concentration "I don't know" she ended up "I thought the same, but he clearly said _because of this gift you where chosen once; not only you but your friends too. Each one of them has his own unique reason, a special gift like yours_"

"Jack holds a special ability" Aki said and I blinked at her direction "_Burning Soul_, right?" she reminded us "and don't forget your brother Ruka" she waved her hand in the air "you two share a special bond together"

"That's interesting" Ruka mused

"So, this is the reason of why only we can do this; pass through Momentum's gate, save Yusei and more. But I don't think I have any special ability like the rest of you; I never had one and I doubt if I ever gain one, like Jack"

"Apparently you have" Aki smirked "otherwise Regulus is lying and I don't think so"

"Are you kidding me?" I glared at her good-naturedly but I have to admit that she had a point.

Both of the girls exchanged a meaning look and giggled.

"Hmmm" I hummed "remember what Martha said; Yusei mentioned something about bonds. I think this is the explanation" I change the subject of the conversation which making me feel a little awkward, I know perfectly well that I hold no special gift like Ruka or Aki.

"The bonds between our Dragons and Crimson Dragon too" Ruka mused "you got a point"

"And between ourselves too" Aki said "passing thought the gate I felt somehow… that we all were…" she tried to explain but she didn't have to.

"I know perfectly well what you mean" I assured her "because I felt the same, we all did"

Ruka nodded and I raised her eyebrows "I believe we are still missing something. We have more evidence here" she was lost into many thoughts "and I wonder, why Regulus kept saying we must hurry, I mean, why the time is against us? What is about to happen? Sure Momentum is out of control but this is the only reason we have to wake Yusei; to shout it down?"

"Where is Jack to make the counting?" I chuckled and both of the girls manage a light grin before Ruka put this serious expression on her face again.

"And what do you think about Junk Warrior appearance?" she wondered.

"He sent him to help us?" I retorted with a question instead of answer scratching the back of my head.

"Yusei _did_ send him to help us" Aki declared "I don't know why or how but I'm sure it's _his_ monster, it wasn't a coincident"

"Probably" Ruka shrugged "maybe he is somewhere near but then why Junk warrior disappeared?"

"Hmmm" I hummed unable to think of something.

"And don't forget about Rua and Jack" Aki referred and I saw with the corner of my eye Ruka frowning at the sound of her brother's name.

"We will find them too, I hope" she said flatly "now that we are gone so far into this I won't allow any failure"

"Neither do I" Aki hit her chest with determination "and we will save Yusei too, no matter what"

I wanted to agree with them, I felt the same way but to be honest I was so lost. We were walking in the desert for many hours under the hot three suns without rest, food or water. I was tired and thirsty and I was ready to give anything for a little rest in the shadow. But in this strange world we have to keep our eyes open the entire time, and remain standby for any monster appearance and I have the slightest idea when the three suns are going to set in the horizon or even if they ever going to set.

* * *

_Maybe you think you this chapter didn't contain much information but trust me; you did read some really valuable ones._

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_, _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**Karlina101**_, _**Seeker Heart**_,_** YugiohObsessed, ****Preaching Res** _and _**BestShot15**_ for their reviews and _**feartheunknownperson **_for her PM._

_It took me some days to write this chapter but you will need only a minute to leave a comment! If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway; I will accept all your comments, good and bad..._


	24. Lost

**Chapter 24 – Lost**

Ruka's Pov

I lost the sense of time as we kept walking for hours and hours. I was feeling tired and really thirsty but I thought it would be selfish if I started complaining. I had to be strong like the others, and since I'm the only one with experience in other worlds it's logical for me to stay cool and focused. Even if I'm scared to death; I can't describe how full my heart is of fear.

Fear for my friends and myself, being in a place like this. _What is this place?_ And most important, _where is this place? Is it a located in the Spirit Word or in another world?_ As much as I want to believe the first option I have to confess that I fear the worst and I have this strange warning in my heart, like a premonition.

This place has nothing in common with the Spirit World. This feeling in my heart; that this Dimension is aggressive, like a huge prison or something. But I didn't want to say anything about it to Crow and Aki. They would freak out, I'm sure of it, because even I am only one step away from it. I took a deep breath. I must stay calm; I would force myself if I had to.

"Ruka?" I heard Aki calling me and I turned to face her, hiding my fears.

"What is it Aki?" I tried to keep my voice calm and strong too, and so far I think I'm doing it perfectly.

"You said you have never seen this desert before, right?"

"Right," I sighed, "it's my first time here."

"Then this is something we all have in common," Crow breathed out a little sadly.

"But I wonder," Aki continued, "since you have more experience," she paused a little to take a deep breath, "do you have any idea how big this desert may be?"

"No," I shook my head. "I'm sorry I can't help. I'm familiar only with the Spirit World."

"I was thinking about this, too," Aki mused also, and this time I set my eyes on her with wonder, waiting for her to say more, "since we have no clue of where Yusei is and now Rua and Jack too, don't you think we should try to travel there?"

"What's your point Aki?" Crow was now looking at her with the same interest.

"Ancient Fairy first spoke to Ruka," Aki replied, "and no one can call out his Signer Dragon but," she lifted one finger in the air, "Regulus was the one who came to you, right?" she asked, but she didn't give me any time to answer her as she opened her mouth again. "He visited you a couples of times and every time he was warning you that we all have to hurry, and that time is running out…"

"Hmmm," I hummed, hearing her words and carefully spinning them in my mind.

"...But he also gave you some good information. I think his worlds are valuable too even if we don't know exactly why, yet."

"I think Aki has a point," Crow mused. "I think it would be nice if we have a word with him without the press of time, since he found it hard to stay with you long enough and explain more."

"I think you are right," I agreed with both of them. "Regulus can help us a lot."

"And explain many things, like why we have to hurry or why we are the only ones who can save Yusei," Aki explained her thoughts successfully and I couldn't help but agree with her without a single doubt.

"So," Crow sighed, "we have to find Jack and Rua…"

I felt a pinch in my heart when I heard him say my brother's name. I was so worried about him. At least he is not alone; he is with Jack. I was hoping for them to be together, otherwise I don't know how I could handle this.

"…and all together we can find a way to the Spirit Word," Crow finished his sentence without a clue about the feelings he caused to me.

"Maybe there is another way," I mused and even if my eyes were lost on the horizon without seeing anything specifically, I was able to sense their gazes on me.

I stayed silent, processing my new theory, which actually started as a way out of my worrying about my brother, and the more I thought of it, it made more sense.

"I wonder," I muttered to myself _that may work, after all it worked for Sunlight Unicorn so_, "why not?" I asked out loud.

"Ruka…?"

"It worked for Sunlight Unicorn!" I exclaimed, looking deep into their eyes only to see their confusion. "Sorry," I muttered quickly, pulling out my deck and searching for one specific card.

"Kuri, Kuri," I heard my little friend and I felt a pinch in my heart.

Kuribon appeared, rubbing his cheek on mine with comfort. I have no idea how I managed to understand him since the only word he uses is 'kuri' but this time he was saying that my plan won't work; at least not the way I was thinking of it.

"It's worth a try," I answered him and I lifted the card in the air. "Regulus!" I shouted with my heartbeats growing faster.

Aki and Crow gasped when both of them realized what I was thinking.

I saw the dim form of Regulus appear before us, but not in the same way in which happened with the Sunlight Unicorn. He seemed clouded, filled with parasites as if he was trying to keep his form visible and not extinguished.

"Kuri." Kuribon seemed sad for some reason.

"Regulus, is that you?" I asked, half glad and half disappointed.

"Ruka, I can't stay with you," he said, and his voice was full of gaps and when he spoke. His form trembled a little, ready to fade away.

"We passed through the gate to another world but things are not as good as we hoped," I said immediately, trying to explain in hurry. "Rua…" I felt my voice cracking but I pressed myself to ignore it, "…and Jack were separated from us. We don't know where they are."

I saw with the corner of my eye that my friends were looking with double wonder in their eyes.

"And we found ourselves in an endless desert," I ended up, "and we are lost."

"Why can we not see you fully like Sunlight Unicorn?" Crow asked, like he couldn't hold back the question for long.

I held back a giggle seeing his reaction, only because of the severity of our situation, and of course because I was wondering the same thing.

"For the same reason I couldn't visit Ruka when she was on Earth," he explained. "Things in the Spirit World are quite complicated and Ancient Fairy needs my help. I can't keep myself away for long. That's why I will have to leave you again soon." His form trembled again.

"What can we do Regulus?" I couldn't think of a better question.

"You have to keep going," he stared at us intently. "You did your best so far but every minute has value, so don't slacken yourselves. Now you have to hurry even more."

"You are always saying this but why?" I knitted my eyebrows. "Why do we have to hurry?"

"The energy flows endlessly," he replied.

"The same energy that came from Momentum?" Crow asked.

Regulus nodded. "You have only days left," he announced and my tongue was tied like a knot from this news, "and it's a great need to hurry more if you want to save your friend."

"Days?" Aki repeated full of worry and agony. "What you mean 'days'? How many and why?"

"We have to keep the energy under control. The time is running out; if more days will pass then many things may happen among the worlds and you won't be able to save your friend. I haven't enough time to explain it to you properly; I must go back to Ancient Fairy," the armed lion informed "You have to find a passage to the Spirit World."

"That's what Aki said earlier," Crow muttered.

"Only if you pass into the Spirit World will we be able to talk and explain everything."

"So we have to hurry and find the way to come to you." I hesitated, "If only we knew how."

"Can you explain what will happen if we don't manage to save Yusei in time?" Aki was pale and made the question sound a little unsure if she wanted to hear the answered.

"Not only him, but many worlds out there," Regulus corrected and I gasped with fear.

We have to save more valuable things except our dear friends, but how? We have only days at our disposal. Days! Is it possible to figure out what happened, what is happening, what we have to do, and how to do it? It's impossible.

"The world will need a shield of protection from the energy; you saw what happened back there when the energy rose up and I came to you using Momentum," Regulus answered the previous question and I nodded. "If you fail, the Balance of the Elements will be destroy forever."

I shuddered at the sound of his words.

"What is the Balance of the Elements?" I finally found the chance to ask.

"It's the five cardinal Elements which every world is based on," Regulus explained and this time his form trembled ready to disappear.

"And…?" I asked as fast as could. I knew Regulus wouldn't stay for long and definitely I couldn't call him back.

He opened his mouth but his voice was a whisper filled with gaps. "Fire… Air… Water…" his voice trembled and fainted just like his form and I moaned from disappointment.

"Damn!" Crow shouted and cursed at the same time, clenching his fists.

"Earth," Aki continued. "And one more, but what is it? I always knew the Elements as four, not five."

"Me, too," Crow agreed.

"Apparently we were all wrong," I sighed, including myself. "There is one more, but Regulus failed to tell us." I skipped the whole part of why he couldn't tell us or stay with us. "And it's vital to know what it is." I bit my lips; one more thing that we had to find out.

I took a deep breath, trying to contain my frustration and stay focused, stay calm and strong, even if I was ready to fall apart.

"We have to find a way to the Spirit World," Aki stated.

"We have to find a way out of this desert first, so let's move," Crow suggested and I started walking again.

"I'm so tired," Aki complained and I grinned lightly.

"You are not the only one," I muttered. "And those three suns up there are such a pain; I wish we could find some water soon."

"Your wish has been heard Ruka!" Crow exclaimed.

"What?" I blinked, confused.

"Over there!" he pointed with one finger straight ahead. "Look!"

"Thank Ra!" Aki cheered.

Hills and mountains like huge rocks were standing far away. What a relief; I was so glad to be seeing something else than endless sand that I was ready to run, forgetting my tiredness already.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Crow grinned and everyone nodded, this time happily as we started walking faster.

"I thought it was closer," Aki gasped after a while when all the three of us stopped to catch our breath. "This desert is really huge."

"I can't agree more with you; we are walking for hours and still we have long distance to cover," I said. "But at least I feel less heat."

And that was true, the suns were burning us less right then.

"Does anyone notice that even the light is less now?" Aki asked and both of Crow and I looked up.

She was right, the three suns were darker but they were in the same place along the sky.

"You think it's darker because its night?" Crow wondered.

"Maybe," I shrugged, "this place is far different than our world or the Spirit World. Maybe this is the circle of the night – day thing. Three suns above the sky and no moon, but throwing more or less light."

"I guess we will be here to test your theory, Ruka," Crow chuckled with a light grin.

"Is there any theory about finding water too?" Aki gasped.

"I wish I have," I sighed heavily. My mouth was dry as bone and I was ready to fall apart from tiredness.

"There's no point staying here," Crow pulled me out of my thoughts. "We're all tired and thirsty; how stupid of us not taking some supplies with us, but the only thing we can do now is keep walking to the hills."

"I hope we will find water there," Aki muttered as she stood up to her feet as we started walking again.

We walked at least for one more hour and all the time the light diminished every passing minute. All the three suns became moons scattering less light around. I could think that we were pretty lucky. If this had happened earlier, then we wouldn't be able to see the hills on the horizon and we had to find another shelter in the vast desert. But since there was nothing else but sand for miles away, I guessed there would be no shelter.

The hills proved to be huge mountains of rocks, with more than one or two sharp tops. When we arrived at the foot of the mountain, I was more than tired.

"A little more and I think I will collapse from fatigue," Aki muttered, sitting down and breathing heavily.

I couldn't blame her even if I wanted to. "I know what you mean," I agreed with her, kneeling down. I was so tired and thirsty. My mouth was dry such as my throat and I was feeling ready to pass out.

"We have been walking across the desert almost all day with no food, water, and barely rest," Crow dropped down to sit next me, sighing. "We are all exhausted and I'm sorry for telling you this but this place has nothing but rocks," he looked up examining the area in the dim light. "I doubt that we will find water in here," he added, disappointed.

I tried to relax a little. Now all three suns had turned into moons and apart from the lack of light the temperature had dropped enough and I was feeling the cold, it was bothering me.

"What are we going to do now?" Aki groaned. "We are in the middle of nowhere with no water or food separated from the others and with only few days at our disposal to save Yusei. What are we going to do?" she asked, again anxious.

"We will keep going," Crow answered her decisively and jumped up to his feet in record time. "Come on!" he shouted with sympathy. "We can't spend the night here, we are exposed," he stated. "Maybe we can find a shelter or something a little higher," and held out a hand to Aki.

She took it and Crow helped her to get up before he turned to help me, too.

"I know you are tired but we have no choice," his voice was soft and sound like he was trying to comfort us and I nodded, taking his hand. I bet he was tired, too.

I found it difficult to stand up on my feet again as the exhaustion hit me at full force. My stomach complained loudly and only then did I realized how hungry I was. I was able to deal with the lack of food but the water; my thirst was killing me and bringing me a terrible headache.

"For Yusei," Crow tried to encourage us and he succeeded it.

Both Aki and I nodded and we started climbing the mountain, following the main road. I had a bad feeling about this mountain but at the same time something was telling me we were following in the right way. But how was this possible? My head was burning and I wasn't able to think straight anymore.

Somehow my body was getting tenser with every step as we all walked quietly; like we were stepping into a trap and maybe this was the right time to inform the others about being extra careful. Unfortunately I didn't have the chance.

In the last corner we found ourselves in front of a huge gate with 2 torches at every side. I stopped dead in my tracks getting real wide-eyed both from fear and astonishment.

Under the torches' light I couldn't see anyone and I swallow with difficulty; if this is a cave's gate then someone would be here, too, guarding it and if no one was here then _where were the guards_?

"Kuri!" Kuribon appeared suddenly bouncing and hitting his little feet in the air screaming with fear "Kuri, kuri!"

"This can be good," I heard Crow whispering.

"Kuri!" Kuribon started spinning around my body "Kuri, kuri!"

"What is it, Kuribon?" I asked, confused, trying to understand.

"It looks like he is trying to warn us for something," Crow noticed.

"And it's not for the good," I muttered. "Kuribon?"

"Kuri!" he was terrified and now I was, too.

"Ruka, what's wrong?"

"We have been watched," I announced, feeling my legs too weak to hold my weight.

"By who?" Aki gasped but I lost my chance to say anything else.

* * *

_Crow is right… I have nothing more to say._

_…_

_Ok, this is my __fourth __contest__: the first who will guess right which the fifth Element is, will win the right__ to do me a question in a PM about my story and I will answer. The contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

_…_

_My thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**, **BestShot15**, **YugiohObsessed**, **Karlina101**, **Preaching Red**, **cr1o5** _and_ **SoccerChick1918** _for their reviews._

_My special thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_ for her help on some beta work._

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway ;)_


	25. Capture

**Chapter 25 – Capture**

_Ruka's Pov_

Someone grabbed my hands from my back and pressed my body to the ground, holding me tightly. A small scream escaped my lips, mostly because of surprise rather than fear. Everything happened too quickly for me to get scared; I didn't manage to blink my eyes. Now I was facing the ground and more than one pair of hands were touching me, holding me and keeping me still. Every attempt to free myself would've been worthless. I tried to peek in my friend's direction; they were treating the same.

"What do we have here?" I heard a sadistic cold voice and I felt the blood leaving my face.

"Humans," I heard another voice answering at the first one.

Now I was ready to lose control of my nerves and panic as much as I want but the only thing I managed to feel was an acute pain in the back of my head and everything went blank.

When I open my eyes again I was feeling dizzy and my vision was bleary. I felt pain in the back of my head in the spot they'd hit me and I tried to lift my hand to touch it. Only then I realized I couldn't; my hands were tied in my back and I was lying on a cold floor feeling weak and tired. I stirred trying to get up in a seated possession but I froze when I heard noise with strange voices. I had no idea what happened or was happening but I was sure for one thing: we are in trouble! I heard Crow gritting his teeth and I turned my head. When I started to wonder I felt the pain piercing my head causing me more pain.

"Crow?" I whispered. "Are you okay?"

"Hush," he murmured. "They are close."

"Who? What happened? Where are we?" I started the questions ignoring the pain in my head, but with a quick look around the room and seeing iron bars I can say we were locked in a prison cell.

"I don't know much, but those _things_ seem really unhappy to see us," he explained dropping his voice to a whisper.

"You were right, they saw us and followed us in the mountain and when we reached the gate they attacked and hit us to lose our consciousness. You and Aki passed out but they failed with me."

Even if I couldn't see his face I sensed his silence laugh and I hummed in agreement.

"I was unable to react but still I had an idea of what was happening," he continued, "and know this: we are not the first humans they saw, if you know what I mean."

I nodded with hope; Rua and Jack!

"Are you okay?" he asked with worry this time.

"Well I have been better but I'm okay," I affirmed. "Tired, thirsty, hungry and my head is killing me," I admitted, "but okay."

I heard him chuckled. "I know how you feel," he said a little sadly, "at least we are still alive and unspoiled."

"We have to get out of here."

"My hands are tied," Crow snarled. "I can't reach my deck to call out a monster." And he was right.

A soft moan came from Aki as she started to wake. She slowly tried to move to a sitting position but when she failed her eyes widened as she realized where she was. She turned her head around, blinking many times when she spotted us.

"What…?" she started but both Crow and I stopped her.

"Quiet," Crow commanded and Aki hushed.

"What happened?" she moved her lips slowly so we would be able to read her question.

Crow explained to her quickly with a low voice but before he finished we heard steps getting closer. Even from the sound I got ready to see something that definitely I wasn't going to like and I was right; my breath choked on my lips and I had to swallowed the bile in my throat. Monsters, scary monster were now in front of us.

I was astonished by our surroundings and more than scared; they were all monsters with tough faces, ready to attack us. I recognized some of them like the Giant Orc, the Beast Striker, and the Hitotsu-Me Giant and many scary beasts.

"They finally awake," the Lord Poison monster spoke.

"You!" the Dark Grepher addressed Crow. "On your feet," he ordered opening the cell door with a huge key.  
Crow tried to stand up but with his hands tied it wasn't something easy to do in time. The guard caught him violently by his shirt and pulled him to stand and shot him a death glare.

If I was in Crow's position the most likely I would've fainted from fear but Crow returned his gaze grunting loudly with contempt.

"I guess you are their leader," Dark Grepher whistled evilly. "You have guts I give you that," and I agreed with him too. I was trebled from fear but Crow looked stronger than ever "Hmm, you remind me someone," the creepy monster breathed on his face. "He was acting like you, looking exactly the same."

I heard Crow gasped and I did the same hearing his words but I didn't get the time to absorb them when he turned his head shouting loudly, "Call the master," and the Green Baboon nodded and left the room.

"Now we are going to see how strong you are." Dark Grepher said ironically and marched to Aki and myself, grabbing me from my shirt too.

I screamed shutting my eyes out of fear feeling his hot breath on my face.

"Don't touch them!" Crow yelled and I heard him struggle.

"Or what?" Dark Grepher laugh at him. "What are you going to do to me?"

"The captain is coming," the Giant Rat snarled and I dared a peek.

The Green Baboon was back and the Dark Grepher pulled his hands away from me.

"Free them," the guard ordered, "they are not going anywhere, anyway."

I gasped feeling someone cutting my ropes; my hands were free now. Aki and Crow were rubbing their wrists just like me and I lifted my head. I saw a form approached us and I realize the 'captain' was already here.

"Well, well, well," I heard the same sadistic voice which made me shuddered.

I turned my head only to freeze in my seat; even my heart stopped beating for a moment. This monster was scarier and creepier from all those monsters together.

"What we have here?" he laughed with sarcasm.

I recognized him; it was the Dark Necrofear and even his name was making me to swallow with difficulty.

"They were spying on us boss," the Giant Orc addressed to their leader.

"We are no spies," Crow dared to say and I couldn't help but admired him for his courage.

"You are lying," the leader said slowly with a hint of warning in his voice. "You look just like the others," and this time I lifted my head with hope.

"_Others_?" I dared to hope.

"But don't worry," he whistled with sarcasm. "We will _take care_ of you," he added evilly with a creepy laugh and my heartbeats rose up at the sound of his voice.

"You know what?" Crow said and I gasped, he was making fun with him and I held my breath. "I disagree," he added with the same sarcasm.

Everything which followed next became too quick to be able to follow with my eyes and my mind. The same time he spoke he moved against him crashing him hard on the opposite cave wall. The speed made them both fall to the ground and I sputtered. The only reason their leader didn't fight back was his surprise as Crow caught him out of guards.

The Dark Necrofear needed only a moment to realize what Crow was doing and planned to fire back but this moment cost him. Crow jumped backwards avoiding the attack and pulling out his deck drawing one card.  
"Blackwing Armor Master!" he shouted raising his card in the air.

His loyal companion appeared in the tunnel and I felt the harsh hands which holding me, releasing me quickly and voices mixed with fear echoing to all caves. Crowd ran, pushing me with force making me swing trying not to lose my balance and swept away by the current. I heard Aki screaming and I tried to stay focus and spotted her and Crow into the chaos which his monster causes.

"Now attack!" I heard him ordering and I felt the earth shaking under my feet at the force of his power.

"Of course," I heard Aki somewhere near me, "Dark Necrofear has 2200 points attack and Blackwing Armor Master has 2500."

I was too confused to try to understand what was happening and my vision was bluer as everything passing through with great speed.

"Look out!" I heard Crow yelling and I managed to moved back just in time before a huge rock from the top of the cave dropped with force and broke into smaller pieces before my eyes.

I felt dust and rubble covering me and automatically by instinct I protect my head with my hands.

"Now!" Crow shouted and I felt hands grasping me pressing me to stand up on my feet and pulling me to move fast.

I started running blinking my eyes to be able to see clearly around me. Crow was holding my hand and Aki was near me running, too.

"Where are we going?" I shouted confused.

"I have no idea," Crow replied and I shook my head.

I didn't care much to find out the answer. The only thing which really mattered was to get ourselves away from those creepy monsters and their leader as far as we could. I didn't notice anything around me; I was just running and running, following Crow and keeping my eye on Aki. When I couldn't hear any noise or screams and my chest was aching from trying to keep my breath until I felt Crow releasing my hand and I collapsed on the floor breathing deeply.

"Where are we?" Aki gasped kneeling down to catch her breath.

"Deep into the mountains I think," Crow answered and I lifted my head; it wasn't the right time to rest.

We were in a small room, a little bigger from the others, with a couple of pathways right and there. The room was illuminated by two torches. Crow went over and took one, holding it tightly in his hand.

"The mountains is full of tunnels," I noticed looking around as fast as I could. I had no idea where I found the strength and courage but for an unknown reason I was feeling something like warm waves making me stronger.

"Yeah but I think it's easy to get lost in there," Aki concluded as both Crow and I were looking the tunnels "I don't know if this is a smart move to make."

"We are already lost," I stated, "or in there," I showed the tunnels behind me with my hand, "or them," I trailed off my hand at the opposite direction.

"If we get caught again I don't think we would be able to escape again," Crow pointed out. "They will be extra careful and we lost the advantage of surprise."

"Alright," Aki flinched, "into the tunnels then."

I had no idea which one led outside but I picked a small one, a little too deserted only with the thought that the guards would never come. With the conclusion we will choose a path like this and we may be safe for longer; if anything with more time at our disposal maybe we can find a way out. My plan worked even to my surprise; for many hours we heard nothing but our own breaths.

The tunnel looked abandoned and the air was too heavy in there. We found several intersections on either side of the tunnel but we stayed on the main path. We had to make a few stops for rest, but we kept our supplies for more difficult situations. Yeah, Crow is a genius, I admit it; he not only found the courage to lift his head and stature and attack their leader and help us to escape but he managed to grab a couple of survival kits from some guards. Now we all felt better after drinking water.

"At least no one's following us," Crow sighed in relief after we took a small break.

"Yes, but for how long?" Aki wondered "We cannot stay in these caves forever, can we?"

"Definitely not," Crow replied and lifted himself into his feet with us doing the same. "Let's go," he added; the same time he spoke the words I felt a pinch straight in my heart.

"Aw!" I exclaim and immediately I slapped my mouth with one hand to keep my voice down and not only.

"Ruka, what's up?" Aki asked with worry.

Damn, they heard me and I can't lie or tell them the truth.

I shook my head. "I'm fine," I said escaping her question and holding my breath.

"Alright, let's move," Crow said and we started walking.

I breathed out the same time, lost into deep thoughts; why I felt this? It was something between a warning but not a bad one and a feeling that something is near. Something we had to find. My heart beat faster. Maybe it's Rua and Jack I thought with hope but no; something was telling me it wasn't them.

As we walked this feeling was growing. It wasn't a bad feeling but my ignorance was really annoying. We stayed in the main tunnel avoiding the small ones out of fear they were going to lead us to a dead end. I was really lost into my thoughts, following my friends almost mechanically.

"Now what?" Crow voice pulled me out of my own world bringing me into our reality.

We were standing and a junction; the main tunnel was super-added into two, both big enough. Crow held the torch above the both openings, examining them. I felt the same pinch again but this time I kept my mouth shut.

"The air is fresh in this one," Crow pointed the right, one marching there. "Let's go this way," he suggested and Aki hurried to followed him but I didn't move a muscle. I was standing there unable to move.

_But why_? Crow is right after all.

"What's wrong?" Crow stopped, turning his head to look at me.

"I don't know," I confessed. "But I think we should take the other one"

"The air here is better, I think is a way out."

"I know," I agreed, "but I think the other one is the right direction."

"Are you sure?" he asked, knitting his eyebrows.

"I have no idea," I shrugged, _but whatever it is, I bet it's better from the other one_, I wanted to say but I was unsure of why and I remained silence.

We all heard voices for far away warning us the monsters were looking for us.

"I'm sorry Ruka, but we are going to take this tunnel," Crow showed the path behind him. "Come," he called to me as he and Aki started walking fast into the wrong, at least to my opinion, way.

I shook my head and I prayed I was wrong as I threw myself after them. I was following them but then my feeling became stronger. This is wrong; this is all wrong, we have to go back. My feeling was too strong and my feet were too heavy. We must stop now before it's too late.

I froze in my place, lifting my head. "Stop!" I ordered them.

Even I felt surprised at the sound of my voice. Both Aki and Crow obeyed my lead.

"Why?" Aki gasped for air.

"We are following the wrong path," I stated without having the slightest idea of why I was so sure about it.

"We have to go back and take the other tunnel."

"You want us to go back?" Crow asked looking at me, astonished. "They are after us."

"I know but trust me," I pleaded, "we must go back."

Crow stared at me for a moment and I returned his gaze with the same seriousness. "Alright," he flinched after some seconds.

"But…," Aki complained but Crow cut her off.

"Lead us, Ruka," he asked. "We trust you."

I flashed a smile, nodding my head. I spun to my tracks and started running in the opposite direction, following my instinct. We got off the tunnel to the main one and this time I chose the second way, feeling like I was doing the right thing. We kept running when voices sounded from down the tunnel, making me assume that the guards were getting closer. I was ready to turn my head when Crow caught me up.

"Don't look back," he warned. "They are after us."

"Hurry!" I suggested and sped up.

The tunnel wasn't straight but had many turns and the terrain was rough and full of rocks and obstacles. Around a corner I saw a faint light in the depth, but as I approached more the light grew stronger. Heat waves emanated from the light and now I knew why we had to go down this road and not the other one.

It was Aki who spoke first. "What is this light at the end of the tunnel?"

"Maybe a way out," Crow answered with hope and I grinned.

This light was impenetrable with bright white color spreading around small waves of energy which I bet only I could feel. This thing is a way out; this is another portal and I couldn't be surer about it.

"It doesn't look like a normal light to me," Aki muttered. "Ruka what do you think?" she turned and looked at me.

I bit my lips; after all I led us here.

"What's your point Aki?" Crow asked and we marched closer.

"Maybe there is something more than a way out of those tunnels," Aki said with a hint of fear.

I stared at her for a while; I could read the question in her eyes; the question which for me was already a fact. _What if this light is another gate?_ I was wondering something else: _where is this portal leads? _But I didn't have much time to worry about it as we were too busy of worrying about the guards were after us.

* * *

_They found another gate but what are they going to do now? Step into the light… or not?_

_My thanks to: _**cr1o5thepolarbear**, **Gotta be Annoying**_, _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**Karlina101**, **YugiohObsessed**_, _**Guest**, **BestShot15**_, and _**christina** _for their reviews and _**feartheunknownperson** _for her PM._

_…_

_Also I have a winner for my contest! Unfortunately I can't say who is right now, because you will have to wait some chapters to find out the right answer, because it's really important information. I will inform the winner with PM._

_Thanks to all of you who took place in my contest too…_

_…_

_My special thanks to: _**Gotta be Annoying**_ for the beta work._

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway ;)_


	26. From one world to another

**Chapter 26 – From one world to another**

_Crow's Pov_

"They are getting closer," I whispered, "and we are trapped in a dead end."

"Alright, we have two options," Ruka said with hurry, taking a deep breath, "we stay here and get caught or getting into this light to somewhere unknown."

The sounds of the monsters were getting louder and louder as they approach and we all standing there trample. Ruka sounded quite sure that this light is our only option and for an unknown reason, I'm trusting her.

"I vote for the second option," I lifted one hand in the air.

Only one corner was separated us now from the monsters and my heartbeats were growing in every second. Aki threw us a confused look.

"Me too," she hurried to agreed with me in the end.

"Into the light then!" Rika shouted, without carrying if the guards are going to heard us anymore.

I hurried to march closer, following her.

"We found them!" we all heard a cold voice of one of the guards.

"And lost them again!" Ruka snapped the same time which she covered the remained distant, between the light and herself with one last step.

I have no idea where she founded the guts to react like this, but I smiled. _Hah! Take that you stupid monsters_.

"Run!" I heard Aki exclaimed and I threw myself into the light, causing a small flash.

The feeling was strange and immediately I realized that our fears were all correct; this light was another portal. I couldn't see anything but I felt warm and cold waves touching me for a split of second and the next time, my feet landed to the hard soil of another world. I blinked my eyes, but this time I couldn't see anything but black, like I was lost in the darkest realm ever.

I heard Aki landing behind me quiet gasping for air, like she held her breath for some time. I grinned; I did the same when I dived into the light.

"Where are we?" Aki wondered and I turned to her voice's direction, still unable to see anything but dark.

"I can only assure you that we are far away from the desert," Ruka replied.

"Damn!" I cursed gritting my teeth, "after all the light form the three suns, I can't even see my nose into this darkness."

"The blindness will leave soon," Ruka said and I blink my eyes until I manage to start seeing some things.

We definitely far away from the desert, as Ruka informed us, and this time I saw high outlines from mountains all around us.

"Where…" Aki started but I caught more noises out there and immediately I pointed her to stop.

"Shh!" I said in hurry, "listen."

"Voices," Ruka whispered and I felt her warm arm in my shoulder, "we have to get out here, we don't know who they are," she suggested and I nodded, even if she couldn't see me.

Now I was able to see more things, as my eyes were familiarizing with the lack of light. We were in somewhere high, in one flat section on one of the hills of the mountains all around. I turned to look the girls above my shoulder and I bit my lips. I'm the only male here, I have to keep them save and I think I did it great so far, but I can rest myself; not yet. I will when we will be in a safer place.

"I will take a look around. You stay here," I said flatly and I was ready to stand up when Aki grabbed my arm.

"This is too frowned," she stated, "don't try to play it a hero," she gave me an angry look. "I know you are exhausted too; we all are," her gaze became softer, "you already did a lot, we escaped because of you but you don't have to press yourself that much," she suggested, "we will stay together."

I stared at her speechless.

"We are exhausted from the previous dimension," Ruka affirmed, "we walked for countless hours without food and water; we were attacked, escaped and found another portal to another world. We need some rest, all of us."

"You are right," I flinched. "But before we rest we must find a shelter," and I scanned the area narrowing my eyes in the dark.

My eye caught something among the mountains; there was a small passage like a path, between the ridges. Apparently I wasn't the only one who spotted it when Ruka approached showing it with her finger.

"You think we can take it?" she asked for my opinion.

"Hmm," I hummed unsure but I give up; we haven't many options. "Ok!" I ended up, "follow me and keep your eyes open. We are not alone in this place," I suggested as I could still hearing some voices.

Both of the girls nodded and I proceed cautiously, slightly stooping trying not to expose myself in public view, as I lead the three of us from the small path, into the ravines of the mountains. At least here we will be outside of view.

"We can stay here for the night," I announced showing to the girls, a small opening in the rock of the mountain, like a natural cave sheltered from the wind or the rain, away from prying eyes and spacious enough to accommodate us all.

"Looks cozy," Ruka commented and I smiled. "After the tunnels on desert's mountains, I think this one looks really cute."

We gather some firewood and I lit a fire; it's a good thing I know some survival tactics, from my growing years in Satellite. We ate some of our supplies and drunk the most of our water. Then I let the girls take some sleep and I stayed awake being the first guard. I sat pensive next to the fire and I listened around me, looking carefully at the sky above me.

The sky was a deep black, not like our sky illuminated by the moon and stars, but this one was simply black. A black that you can only see when its night and it's raining and you hear footsteps behind you and they get louder and you scream and nothing's there, except it is even blacker than that, because you know that something _is_ there and they're waiting for you to leave.

I stood there standby with eyes and ears wild open, but except some normal night sounds and my heartbeats, nothing else caught my attention, until I woke up Aki to guard next and I finally let myself, to slip into the dream world.

I woke up feeling someone shaking me lightly and I moaned as I spun in my place.

"It's still night?" I yawned rubbing my eyes.

"Yes and no," Ruka replied and I lift one eyebrow. "It's been hours, but no sun appeared in the sky," she explained seeing my confused expression, "I think this is one of the strange things of this word, no moon, no sun."

"I see," I muttered and I stand up on my feet, "well," I said as I was stretching myself, "let's see the good side, with less light we can easily hide ourselves," I tried to smiled, but I failed.

"We have to keep going," Aki suggested and gave me some of our food, "I don't know how many hours we spend here but time flies really fast and after Regulus warning…" she paused tying to hold back a sob, as she sniffed her nose.

I placed one hand on her shoulder. "I wish I could assure you that everything is under control Aki." I said apologetically, "but I don't know anymore. We can only hope."

"I'm not doing anything else," she muttered and I saw tears in her eyes when she shook her head. "I just hope that everything will be ok, but then Regulus said we have only some days… I don't know… I'm so confused…" she paused herself looking away and I saw her rubbing her eyes, no doubt she was crying quietly and I felt useless unable to make her feel better; and not only her.

"The Dark Necrofear said you looked like another man he saw," Ruka whispered, "and the guards said-" she swallowed with difficulty, "-I think it was Jack and Rua," now I saw tears in her eyes too and I felt my heart tightened, "but we left this world behind, we can't go back and search for them and with time against us, we can only wish that Jack and Rua are safe and unspoiled. We can't lose a minute to anything else but what Regulus said; we must find a portal to Spirit World."

Aki marched toward Ruka and hugged her on her shoulders to comfort her. We are in the edge of knife. We can't go back and search for Jack and Rua, we have to keep going from one word to another, hoping that we will manage to get into Spirit World in time and save Yusei.

Both of the girls knew that already. That's the reason of why Ruka didn't focus on her brother only and why Aki was showing all this strength. None of them complained because we were tired or hungry or because we had to spent the night into a cave on the mountains with less rest and I was more than relief for that, but extra worry having two girls in my responsibility, but right now I was feeling sad, really sad. I couldn't help them with their fears, because I was feeling the same. I was worrying about Rua and Jack, about Yusei, about the whole world and every world. But we didn't have time, not even to think about our worries, let alone let ourselves suffered in our own sorrow.

I took a deep breath. "Come!" I tried to keep my voice calm, I was ready to weep myself too if we stay like this for long. "Let's have a look around these mountains, shall we?" I suggested and both of the girls nodded.

We took the same path as the previous day, or night, since in this world there is no day and we kept walking unsure of what else to do. We just found ourselves in another realm, darker and scarier than the last one without a clue of what to do; only what we _have to_ do.

"Any idea of how are we going to find another gate?" I asked when we made a small brake between the mountain and some big rocks to keep ourselves hidden.

"Ummm," Ruka looked like she was about to say something, but kept on deciding against it. Finally, she couldn't take it and took a deep breath. "Guys," she started, "do you remember when we were lost into the tunnels and I insisted to take the other direction?"

"Yeah," I said slowly recovering the memory.

I narrowed my eyes; back there I didn't pay much of attention as we were running from those monsters and when I saw her being so sure, as she insisted to go back because we were following the wrong tunnel, I just let her lead us and we were able to found the next portal. Now I was wondering, why she was so sure about it?

"Well, I had a feeling about it," she explained answering my thoughts.

"A feeling?" Aki reiterated knitting her eyebrows.

Ruka nodded. "I had a premonition since we reached on the mountain roots and started climbing. I was felling we were walking into something good and bad at the same time and now I know why. We were marching straight to the next passage, but also into the lair of those monsters back there."

I nodded a little confused by her revelations.

"After we escape I was still feeling weird. At the beginning I felt like something was pinching my heart and as we were getting closer this presage was getting stronger. That's the reason of why I was so tense to follow the other path. I just didn't know why."

"That's good," I said after a long pause absorbing her words, "at lest we manage to escape because of this."

"Is that mean that if you are feeling a similar sense then a portal would be near?" Aki asked and I blinked happily at Ruka's dissection with hope.

The younger girl nodded her head with a wide smile.

I breathe out in relief. "This is the best news I heard after our travels," I muttered, "and I'm really glad, so this make our quest easier," I pointed grinning, "we can ramble ourselves here and there with Ruka as an antenna," I joked and both of the girls laugh joyfully.

"Until then let's get some rest, shall we?" Aki suggested leaning herself above the mountain wall closing her eyes, but she didn't had the chance.

To our surprise the wall tumbled and burst above her weight, revealing an underground gallery. Aki didn't have time to get caught from somewhere and fell backwards with the broken pieces of rock and stone.

"Aki!" I exclaimed and marched at the edge of the cavity, looking down. She landed a few yards away with a loud thud.

"Damn!" she cursed rubbing her butt.

"Are you ok?" Ruka asked with worry.

"I think so," she replied, trying to stand up in her feet.

"Stay there, we are comming!" I informed and I helped Ruka to jump down and in the next minute, I landed beside her.

"What happened?" Aki asked confuse still rubbing her butt.

"You smashed the mountain with your weight," I teased her and she gave me a death glare to making shut up, before she turned her attention to the cave.

It was actually a tunnel but bigger than the tunnels in the desert world's mountains and definitely not abandoned. It was illuminated with lamps, while rails were on the ground and judging from the condition of this place, it was in constant use. _Not good_.

"We had to get out of here as soon as possible," I said immediately and Aki nodded in agreement, but Ruka was stay still, froze in her place.

"Are you alright Ruka?" I was beside her in two steps.

"I can feel it," she murmured with her eyes lost.

"Feeling what?" Aki was near her in zero time too.

"Something is near," she explained.

"Is it good or bad?" I asked immediately, pulling her with me at the side of the tunnel.

"Both!" she answered my question scared and worried and the same time I heard sounds of wheels, approaching us.

We exchange a worry look and hurried to hide ourselves, behind some wooden boxes. The sound become louder as it passes behind us and faded. I peeked and I saw a big wagon, with two winged beasts pushing it quickly. I turned to the girls and seeing their faces expression, I can tell that they saw the beasts too.

"Come," I suggested, "we must find a way out and soon."

"Sure," Aki nodded with wide eyes from terror.

"Are you ok?" I asked her staring her for a while.

"I just fall into a hole, inside some tunnels, fill with creepy winged Beasts," Aki said with a hint of sarcasm, "you think I'm fine?"

"No," I shook my head and she rolled her eyes.

"We have to be careful in here," Ruka warned us looking around.

We started walking inside the tunnels, felling somehow of a déjà-vu. We were walking into some tunnels a day ago and here again we are marching-

My thought cut immediately when I felt the ground shaking and disappears under my feet, with a muffled sound. A small scream escaped my lips and I heard Aki and Ruka screaming by instinct too, from the sudden fall. I fell to a lower lever with my back and gravel along with bigger rocks fell above me too and I gasped form the dust, trying to catch my breath and I moaned form pain.

"Are you ok?" I asked my friends but instead of answering I heard a menacing snarl and I blinked trying to focus my gaze; one of those scary big Winged Beasts was before us and I froze. Now we are doomed.

"What we got here?" the guard whistled, lowering his weapon.

I shouted my eyes getting ready to feel the pain. But the same time I heard a strange sound, like something was on fire and I felt an extremely warm wave flying above me and I opened wide my eyes looking confuse the winged beast falling back, screaming and holding his face. Some smoke coming out from his clothes which made me realize that the wave of fire, I felt some minutes ago, must hit it in the head.

I heard flames lighted up behind me again, and another wave of fire hit it with force, pushing it against the wall. That impact along with the hot hit was made the winged beast pulling out another painful cry and fell to the ground unconscious.

I was looking the whole scene happening before my eyes holding my breath and I needed some seconds to realize what just happened. I huffed in relief, turning my head at the source of fire. Clearly someone saw us and was strong enough to fight with this beast, and I was right because my eyes caught a short human form.

"Thanks for saving us," I thanked and I gasped, as my mind edited the images my eyes showed to me.

* * *

_This chapter had no answers, but I hope you still like it._

My thanks to: **_IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor_**, **_Gotta be Annoying_**, **_cr1o5thepolarbea_**_, **Karlina101**_ and **_YugiohObsessed_**, for their reviews.

My special thanks to: **_IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor_** for the help, when I was writing this chapter.

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway ;)_


	27. Prophecy

**Chapter 27 – Prophesy**

_Aki's Pov_

It was a she, but definitely wasn't a human, even the appearance was the same. Right behind me was a little girl, dressed in a black dress and a matching black hat. She had abundant, long blond hair but the strangest of all, was that she had raised her right hand in the air waving her fingers, as a marble of pure fire were floated over her hand and she was playing with it, like a toy. She looked somehow familiar.

"Hey, you are the Fire Sorcerer, aren't you?" I asked when I manage to stand up to my feet again. "You are a duel monster spirit."

"Yes," she affirmed my words, "and you are…?" her voice faded with wondering.

"Um," Ruka began, "I'm Ruka, and she is Aki," she pointed with her finger at my direction, "and he is Crow" she trailed her finder on him.

"I see," Fire Sorcerer waved her head along with her hand making the fire ball trembled, "and what are you doing down here in those dungeons, Ruka, Aki and Crow?" she threw the question with a hint of warning, if we tried to lied about it.

"Trust me," Crow hit his chest, "we didn't want it."

She gave him a strange look.

"We were looking a passage to a world," Ruka answered her and I nodded in agreement, "and we found ourselves in here by accident."

"Actually an accident," I muttered rubbing my butt, which was still hurting from the fall.

"And why you are passing through the worlds?" Fire Sorcerer was cleverer than she looked, from the first sight.

"We want to save a dear friend of ours and not only," Ruka answered.

"I see," the duel monster spirit stared each one of us, "so, where are the others?" she asked in the end and I gasped.

"What?" I blinked surprised. _Is she a Fire Sorcerer or a Psycho Sorcerer?_

"How do you know about the others?" Crow asked surprised.

"Aren't you the humans from the Prophesy?" Fire Sorcerer retorted. "Like the rest." she added.

"What?" I asked before I was able to stop myself, utter confusion by her words.

"What Prophesy? What are you talking about?" Ruka was as confused as I was.

"A Prophesy, an ancient Prophesy about two women and four men."

"And what exactly is this all about?" Crow asked a little tentatively.

"You never heard of it again?" Fire Sorcerer was now looking us absolutely astonished.

We exchanged a confusing look.

"No," Ruka replied honestly, "we haven't," and both of Crow and I simply nodded our heads.

"Hmm," the girl hummed, "I guess it's because you are never been here before," she concluded and made a sign to follow her. "Let's go to a safer place to talk all together, shall we?"

"Good idea," Crow agreed, but I still had my doubts.

"Are you sure we can trust her?" I asked him quietly closer to his ear.

"I think we can," he mused, "she saved us from those winged beasts after all, if she is with them then why bothered?"

"It's alright," Ruka assured us, "she is ok, I can sense it," and I waved my head as we followed the Fire Sorcerer.

We passed through some tunnels deeper into the mountains, trying to avoid unpleasant companies and kept ourselves under cover. Ruka's sense proved to be really helpful, even if the Fire Sorcerer was really clever and knew where every passage goes. She leads us in a whole underground city.

I gasped from surprise and awe, gazing the roads and houses from above when she knocked a spot, on the edge of the tunnel's walls; or at least I thought I was a wall, until I saw it opening, revealing an entry.

"Over here," Fire Sorcerer pointed and marched into the passage holding some flames in her hands. "Hurry!"

We followed her into a small but comfortable chamber with some old furniture. There were more people in this room and all of them glanced to our direction, with fear and wonder. Even if I wasn't feeling any threat or something, I felt my body going tense.

"Who are they?" a man asked the duel monster spirit.

The Fire Sorcerer shut down the flames and lifted her head with a serious gaze, "I found them in the tunnels," she explain, "go get the others, I'm sure they will be happy to see them," she said to a little boy, who nodded and get off the room in hurry.

"Who will come?" Crow frowned, "and why they will be happy to see us?"

"You will found out soon," she smiled lightly, "until then, let me introduce you to the rest," and moved her hand showing all around the room.

"What is this place?" Ruka asked after our recommendations and sat down. They offered us some food and water.

"This is a world which been ruling by the winged beast," a girl, around sixteen named Hanako, replied, "we were leaving here in peace, but some weeks ago everything turned upside down."

"What happened?" I asked.

"Strange lights and winds," Hanako explained, "the sun disappeared and everything we use to know changed dramatically," she shivered at the memory, "and after some days, those winged beast appeared along with many others spirits and forced us to came down here and worked for them."

"That's terrible." Ruka exclaimed.

"Some of us manage to escape from their control, with some help from other spirits," Hanako peeked on Fire Sorcerer, "and we still leave here trying to protect ourselves from them."

All the eyes in the room turned to the duel monster girl.

"This isn't my original world," she explained and my jaw dropped, "but about one and half mouth ago, I have been absorbed in to a maelstrom and the next minute I found myself here."

"One and a half month you said?" Ruka asked with wide eyes and I gasped when I realized what's on her mind.

"Kind of."

"You think what I think?" I whispered to my friends, feeling the temperature in the room falling sharply.

Crow nodded. "It's around the same time when Yusei started his experiment, or at least when he was starting to become weaker, according to Martha."

"So, that means, that whatever happened back there, affected other worlds too and not only our own?" I concluded.

"Of course," Fire Sorcerer waved her hand lighting up some flames, "there are many words out there and all of them communicate with each other."

"Yes," Ruka agreed, "but what happened here is far worse than what happened to our world."

"Hmmm," the spirit hummed somewhat uninterested.

"I don't know what happened to your world strangers," Hanako said, "but here we were a little prepared for it to happen."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh no, we are not insane," she raised her hands in surrender, "you know, there is a Prophesy about it," she added and everyone in the room started to murmured and nodding their heads.

"Fire Sorcerer mentioned it before," Crow said, "but what exactly is this all about?" he added with a hint of anger, "we have no idea of what is happening-" now he raised his voice, "-we just want to find a next passage to the next world and… and help our friend… and know we find out, that more things happen… strange things and what the heck it this Prophesy anyway?" he paused with a confused look, trying to catch his breath.

"Easy there," I said a little surprised for his sudden behavior. Apparently he was more stressed than I thought.

"Calm down Crow," Ruka suggested, "I'm sure they will explain everything," and the girl nodded her head.

Crow took a deep breath looking around awkwardly, for his sudden temper, saying nothing.

"You see there is a Prophesy since ancient times," Hanako started, "about those incidents among the worlds. Everyone from this world is familiar with it," many people nodded and the girl continued, "the Prophesy started with this: _The time will come, when the white rivers in the universe, will be close to one another…"_

"White rivers?" I repeated confused.

The girl nodded. "The whole Prophesy is complicate, but more or less it says that when this happen no world would look the same anymore."

I knitted my eyebrows with wonder. That's odd, really odd and completely new.

"This already happened, since our world changed and according to Fire Sorcerer, her world changed too."

The duel monster girl hurried to agree. "In our kingdom we are also familiar with the same Prophesy."

"Regulus also said things are not well in the Spirit World too," Ruka reminded us stayed silence for a while in deep thoughts.

"That means our world will change too," Crow concluded in the end, "we cannot allow something like this to happen."

"Not only to our world, but to every world out there," I said flatly.

"You are the ones who will save us all!" Hanako announced and everyone in the room nodded and started to whispered again.

"_We are the only one who can do it!_" I stared at Ruka, when she repeated Ancient Fairy's words in a whisper.

"I don't know why she said such a thing. We want to help… It's just…" I looked apologetically the young girl, "we don't know what to do, to stop this distraction," I ended up feeling sad and disappoint.

"Don't give up hope so easily," Fire Sorcerer said, "in my kingdom we are more familiar with this Prophesy, even if my mistress didn't say much about it. She knows everything, but she kept it quite saying that this Prophesy can be chance as time passes."

"A Prophesy can be change?" I wondered looking the spirit monster.

She nodded. "Absolutely!" she assured, "this Prophesy already change once, according to my mistress."

"We don't know much here about it, but the Prophesy seems to have many different endings," Hanako informed.

"Why things must be complicate like this?" Crow groaned, "Why they can't say: this is what is going to happen and this is the way to stop it?"

I couldn't help but smiled but wondering the same.

"Tell us more about what this Prophesy says," Ruka requested.

"When the white rivers caused all those damage it continues saying: _Five humans will travel among the worlds, because they won't have another choice._ _Two women and three men and they won't be alone_."

"Not five, but six," Fire Sorcerer corrected them, "_two women and four men,_ this is the change in the Prophesy, which took place some years ago."

I held my breath as my mind explained her words, but stubbornly I refused to believe them. _We are the ones from the Prophesy_? Impossible!

"We always knew there were five humans," the young girl informed, "but when things in our world turned upside down and I met Fire Sorcerer and some others Spirits, they insisted the Prophesy changed since the last time we heard it"

"Yes" Fire Sorcerer replied calmly.

"So in our days there will be six warriors instead of five," Hanako explained, "you are the warriors."

I gasped hearing this but Crow was the one who reacted first.

"Wowowow!" he waved his hands in the air, "you made a mistake here, we are no warriors."

Both Ruka and I nodded.

"We want to help and we will try at least to do what we can to save our friend," Ruka blinked, "but as Crow said; we are no warriors."

"But you are going to fight, right?" the young girl explained, "that makes you warriors and the Prophesy also says: _They are going to fight because only they have powers like no others._"

"But…" I started but Fire Sorcerer didn't let me.

"It doesn't matter if you are warriors or not," she said flatly, "if you are, good! If you are not, you will be. You have to, we need you," her voice had a hint of sadness, "the Prophesy also says: _With their powers will gain the faith which they can't deny._ You will fight back into this chaos and make things right, shielding the _white rivers_ form causing more distraction, among the universe."

"We can't deny?" my heart must skip a beat.

"But if we failed…" Crow said with terror.

"_Then the Balance of the Elements will be destroyed forever,_" Ruka continued using Regulus worlds, "this is a part from the Prophesy too, right?"

"We are not sure about that part yet," Fire Sorcerer nodded, "the Prophesy can be change again; although I doubt and that's why you must hurry, before it's too late."

"I'm not feeling well," I whispered holding my chest and taking deep breaths.

"Regulus knows about this Prophesy," Ruka concluded.

"Every Spirit knows it," Fire Sorcerer affirmed.

"And you said it can be change?" Crow asked with hope.

"The mistress of my world is really strong and holds great powers, but she is not unmistakable," the spirit explained, "this is one reason of why she is not talking about it. Things can be change and our choices affect this."

"And what if you are wrong about us?" Crow asked, "what if we are not the humans from the Prophesy and you are mistaken?"

"I'm not," she insisted and deeply I agreed with her.

If Ruka and I are the two women then Crow, Rua, Jack and Yusei must be the four men and if this true then we need to save Yusei, not only to stop the energy from Momentum, but for something more important and we must hurry to do it.

"How do you know the Prophesy is referred to us?" Crow doubted her words again.

"You are humans," Fire Sorcerer replied, "the only humans I ever saw in many years," her gaze fell upon us and I have to admit that for a little girl, she is looking really taught, "with only exception three days ago," she added and I held my breath as I heard Ruka and Crow gasping behind me.

Sudden a door at our left opened with force, causing us to stand up and I saw the boy from earlier running inside the room.

"I told them!" he announced officially, "I informed them that Fire Sorcerer found them. They look extra happy and now they are on the way here."

"Who?" Crow and I asked in the same time and the boy opened his mouth to reply, but he lost his chance.

"About time to show up yourselves!" a strong, loud, manly voice made us turned our heads to the left, searching for the owner with mix feelings.

And I found him standing in the door looking us carefully with a slight smile in his lips.

* * *

_Oups! Prophesy? Where did this came from?_

_…_

_Ok, this is my fifth contest: the first who will guess who this man is, will win the right__ to do me a question in a PM about my story and I will answer. The contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

_…_

My thanks to: **IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**, **YugiohObsessed**, **Gotta be Annoying**, _, _**cr1o5thepolarbear** and **BestShot15** for their reviews.

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway..._


	28. Together again

**Chapter 28 – Together again**

_Jack's Pov_

"Jack!" I heard three voices calling me and sounded extra happy to see me.

Crow jump up to his feet in zero time and run to our direction with Aki. "Man, I can't believe it's you" he said.

"I never thought I would ever say this, but I'm glad seeing this funny grin of yours, on your marker face," I chuckled lifting my hand in the air to greet him with our old ways.

"Same here you stupid arrogant man," he made fun of me but I was too happy to see him again and I didn't care to fired back, when he hit my palm in the air and slammed a hard hand against my back, as he smiled widely.

"I feared we lost you," Aki breathe out in relief.

"Nah!" I heard Rua's voice from behind, as he stepped in the room, "it will need more that some creepy monsters and scary portals among the worlds, to keep us separated from each other."

"RUA!" Ruka shouted and run to throw herself in record time into his brother's lap, hugging him tightly, "I was so worry about you," she said and started crying with tears of joy in his shoulder.

Her twin pulled his arms around her in a protective embrace. "Shh!" he stroked her back with comfort, "its ok, we are all together now."

"I was scared that I would never see you again," she gasped between her sobs, "I was so scared… and worrying if you are ok and save… alone or with Jack. Are you alright? You are not hurt, are you?" she pulled back and exanimate him carefully.

"Don't worry," Rua grinned, "I assured you that both Jack and I are in a perfectly good health."

"Thank Ra!" she whispered wiping her tears away, with her eyes still on her precious brother.

"What happened to you, after we passed through the gate?" Crow asked knitting his eyebrows, as he replaced his grin with a serious expression.

I tried to hold back a smiled; Crow and seriousness it's such a strange and funny combination. I looked my friends and pointed to sit down before we started to explain our stories and they nodded. This is going to be an interesting conversation.

"Well," I cleared my throat, "before we told you our experience and revealed everything we found out here, I would like to hear yours first."

Both of Aki and Crow started to explain what happened to them. How they found themselves in the desert and realized duel monsters are real after their attack by the Harpie lady and Haprie lady's sisters and how they manager to came in contact with Regulus. I was hearing carefully every word they said, but when they explain the Junk Warrior part, my eyes widened in shock. I peeked on Rua, who was listening quietly too.

"He appeared suddenly to hunt out the enemy?" I asked.

"Not exactly suddenly," Aki corrected, "we saw him from far away, flying with great speed to our direction, but we recognize him only when he came closer and attack Haprie lady's sisters."

"That's odd," I mused looking on Rua.

He was seating on the couch with Ruka beside him and he was threw one arm around her, as she was resting her head on his shoulder.

"Why?"

"Because Junk Warrior protected us too," Rua answered instead of me and Crow raised one eyebrow, "we landed in the desert too, but apparently in a different area from yours," he explained, "and before we managed to blinked our eyes or wondered where were you, we have been attacked by the Sand Stone monster-" Ruka tensed, "-but it's ok," he rubbed her back, "Junk Warrior appeared out of nowhere and made the rock beast returned under the sand," he waved his head confused and shrugged, "it was weird because after that, he flied away immediately."

"So you were…" Ruka started but I didn't let her finished.

"We will tell our story later," I cut her off softly, "now continued with yours."

Crow nodded and explained how they walk into the desert for hours, until they reached at the mountains when they were attacked by some monsters and get caught as prisoners.

"Who was their leader?"

"Dark Necrofear," Aki replied and I gritted my teeth.

"That bloody monster," I whistled angrily.

"He is really evil, he and his gang found us in the desert," Rua informed, "they hit us too and when we woke up again, we were into a mine filled with tunnels to every direction."

"So that's why he said Crow reminds him of someone," Aki commented. "How did you escape from them?"

"Easily?" Rua smirked, "well, their leader was the only really smart one, but most of the others weren't. So I tricked them, pretending I was fainted because of the lack of water and they leave me there to bring some."

"Rua showed really courage back there," I said and I sense his chest filling with pride.

"Really?" Aki and Crow said in the same time but Ruka locked him again in a tight hug.

"I always knew you are brave, after all you are not my hero from nothing," she whispered caused him blushing a little.

"Nah, it wasn't only me." Rua scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "Jack did the rest," he stared at me "some of the guards left to bring some supplies and we found ourselves with only two stupid monsters and Jack was untied himself without them knowing, so he knocked them down really fast."

"It was easier than I thought," I said, "after that we started running into the tunnels, trying to find a way out, until…" I peeked on Rua, "he stopped me and pointed another way, saying he had a feeling."

"You did?" Ruka asked him in shock with wide eyes.

"Well yes," Rua was still looking uneasy, "I don't why but we found the next portal to this world."

"That's strange," Aki mused, "the same happened to us with Ruka."

I raised an eyebrow confused.

"She stopped us saying we are following the wrong way," Crow explained, "the monsters were after us and we didn't have time to lose, so when I saw her so sure we just followed her to the next gate."

"But our way escaping from them, were a little different from yours," Aki grinned, "you should have seen what Crow did."

And she explained how he attacked to their leader and called out a monster to defended, grapping some supplies kits from some guards and run deep into the tunnels. I was listening confused and astonished.

"Really Crow?" I questioned. "That's very impressive," and I grinned seeing him acting like Rua from earlier.

"Following Ruka we came here," Aki continued what happened to them, until Fire Sorcerer saved them from a Winged Beast.

"Hmm," Rua hummed, "its sounds like you had a hard time."

"We were a little luckier," I added, "you see the first dimension we landed was the same dimension where the Duel Academia which Juudai Yuki and his friends transformed, years ago," I informed and smiled to their confused faces.

"How do you know that?" Crow glanced at me with wonder, "how can you be so sure?"

"I am sure Crow," I assured him and the others putting my hand in the inside pocked of my coat and pulling out some papers, "because before we left Martha's house, I make sure to take a small part from Yusei's secret file."

"That's brilliant." Ruka exclaimed.

"This word is also in his file," Rua said, "it's the second world where Juudai and his friends traveled when they were after one of their friend, Johan. In the file there is lots of information about this world."

"I see," Crow murmured, "at least we have some help here," he looked around breathing in relief.

"We have more to tell you," Rua smiled and I nodded.

Ruka, Crow and Aki looked us with wide eyes waiting to find out what we have discovered those days.

"More or less you know what happened to us to the desert dimension," I started, "oh, and for the record the time there has its own speed…"

"What is that mean?" Aki mused.

"How many days passed since we passed thought Momentum?"

"One in the desert," Crow counted on his finger, "we spend a night here… so… it's two, well three days."

"We wish." Rua muttered and his sister stared him with wonder, "because it's four days actually."

"Rua and I spent one day in desert but you guys stayed there for two days, not one," I explained.

"I don't know what to say," Aki stirred confused in the seat, "but after what I saw the last three or four days I'm ready to believe everything."

"We also found out more evidence here," I said opening the papers from Yusei's file, "you see he tried to gather every article about alternative words and he founded a lot."

"But not all," Fire Sorcerer said calmly.

"What you mean _not all_?" Ruka asked.

"You see there are twelve different Dimensions in our Universe," Fire Sorcerer explained what she had told us three days ago.

"Twelve? Wow!" Crow said.

"Right," I agreed, "the first is Shadow Realm or World of Darkness; one of the first worlds out there and extremely dangerous dimension. Yusei found a lot about this world, actually twelve Duels that took place in the Shadow Realm, and some of them involved the King of Games, Yuugi Muto."

"This place is more like a prison or a place of punishment," Rua continued and I could sense Ruka's, Aki's and even Crow's fears.

"But don't worry about this world, we are not going there, by any portal," I assured them.

"Again, why you are so sure?" my old teammate wondered.

"Because if you want to go there you need one of the seven Millennium Items or the Shadow Charms," I explained "and all of those Items and Charms lost years ago."

Aki breathe out in relief hearing this. "Thank Ra!" she placed one hand on her chest, "I don't mind to go there if by doing this we will safe Yusei, but I feared for him; being in a place of eternal suffering, like this… alone… and…" she paused and shuddered, "it's good to know that we need a Millennium Item to open this dimension's gate."

I nodded. "Abvious our world in the next," I continued, "and now we have some more, especially from Juudai and his friends travels, among many dimensions; the Desert World, this one which is call Dark world, the Supreme king's world, which involved his castle too. The Underworld dimension where Juudai's friend lost, when they have been sacrificed from a monster to create the Super polymerization card."

"My Ra!" both of Aki and Crow exclaimed.

"Now we have some other, but I'm not sure if they are just locations into the Dark or Supreme king's Kingdom like the icy area the rocky wasteland dimension and the Exodia's Cave."

"You found out all those from Yusei's file?" Aki asked.

"Not only," I replied, "I get some help here," I waved my head around the room.

"I see," she mused.

"Ruka's world is one of them too," I peeked on her.

"Spirit World!" she nodded.

"Yes, it's one of the twelve Dimensions just like the Neo Space world," I continued, "a part of the universe inhabited by the Neo-Spacians, which it's really close to our world, since its orbits around Jupiter, if our information is correct."

"What a mess," Crow sighted heavily, "but we still miss some dimension here," he pointed.

"There is also the Dominion of the Beasts world and this is all we know that far," I ended up.

"That's my world!" Fire Sorcerer commented.

"Let's see the good side," Crow tried to grinned, "Shadow realm, our, Desert and Dark worlds are already out, we have eight remain dimensions."

"And we are searching only one," Aki sighed heavily.

"Yeah!" Crow growled.

"You want a way to the Spirit World, but there is also mine," Fire Sorcerer announced, "it is also known as the kingdom of the legendary Dragons; my mistress is there, so if you visit my world she will help you a lot, answering every question you have and explaining everything about the Prophesy."

"That would be helpful but since we have no time to west…" Crow began.

"Sure we won't waste it if we tried to go there," Ruka corrected him softly, "but you know what we mean," she added and the spirit nodded.

"So we will keep our plan and we will try to find a way to the Spirit World," Crow ended up.

"Since Regulus wants us there," I added.

"May I ask you a question?" Crow addressed to the duel monster girl; she nodded. "Why you asked us where are the others, since you knew where they were."

"Isn't it obvious Crow?" I sighed and he gave me a death glare.

"I wanted to test if you really were who I thought you were."

"Huh?" Crow winced confused and I rolled my eyes.

"Come Crow!" Aki giggled. "She just tested us to see if we really are friends with Jack and Rua."

"Oh!" he muttered and blushed lightly.

Same old and stupid Crow, but at least he is our stupid Crow.

"I see," Fire Sorcerer waved her head with understanding, "then I know where the next gate is."

I grinned seeing their faces.

"You do?" Crow's eyes ware like golf game's balls.

Fire Sorcerer nodded, "in fact the gate is pretty close."

"Really?" my old teammate asked.

He stared giving in my nerves. "Why is it so difficult to accept it and you keep asking stupid questions, you stupid one?"

"I didn't ask your opinion," he snapped, "and by the way, if you two are here three days already, what exactly were you waiting for to pass through?"

"That's a good question," well he is a bit clever too, but let's don't give him the credits already, he remains stupid, but clever stupid. "Actually we were ready to pass it yesterday when…" I paused, "well, you better ask Rua," I added.

Crow, Aki and Ruka stared at him confused.

"Well…" he started, scratching his head, "as jack said, we were ready, and Fire Sorcerer was also ready to lead us there when…" he narrowed and turned his gaze upon his sister, "It was strange," he continued, "a feeling that both of Jack and I should have to wait before we pass through the gate. It was weird and when I told Jack, he agree to wait a couple of days."

"His strange feeling saved us in the Desert Dimension so I trusted him again," I explained.

"We arrived yesterday," Aki said.

"And we reunited today, so I did the right thing."

"That's odd Rua," his twin sister mused, "I didn't know you had a premonition like this; first you felt the gate was near and then you felt us when we came into this world."

"I know," Rua rubbed his neck, "I can't explain why I feel it, but I do."

"So what are we doing now?" Aki interrupted.

"Since we are all together, we can leave right away or stay and get some more rest," Crow named our two options.

"I think it's better if we leave now," I decided. "We have only some days left."

"I believe the same," Ruka agreed and all of my friends nodded too.

"Alright then," Fire Sorcerer stood up. "Follow me!" and waved her hand, lighting up some flames in the air.

* * *

Aw, finally together! Go team 5D's, don't give up!

_…_

_Also **Gotta be Annoying **won my contest, but she gladly gives her place to the next winner, so **Mess** it's you._

_ But hey guys, I'm so happy for your reviews and your support, all this time and I feel I'm in the mood of giving some information, so everyone who guessed it was Jack, is a winner! *claps*_

_So _**G.A**_., _**Mess**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**SamSam92**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_ and _**Karlina101**_, first thank you for taking place in my contest, second congratulations! Sent me your questions with a PM._

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

_…_

_My thanks to: ____, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, _**dub-step syndicate king**_, _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**SamSam92**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_, _**Karlina101**_ and _**BestShot15**_ for their awesome reviews._

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway..._


	29. Directions

**Chapter 29 – Directions**

_Ruka's Pov_

We followed her into the tunnels in the underground city, and to our luck we found no threats.

"This will take you to the next level," Fire Sorcerer said opening a big door, revealing another room.

This chamber was empty, with a high ladder which leads into another gate. I thought it was another dig door but when we all climbed up there, I blinded from surprise. This door wasn't just big or enormous; it was a _huge_.

"What the…" I mumbled astonished, felling tinny like an ant in front of this really gigantic door and I couldn't but kept staring it with fear and awe.

"This is what we call a really big door," Rua smirked.

"Where is this leads?" Aki asked the spirit.

"I don't know," Fire Sorcerer shrugged, "I never crossed it."

"But we will," Jack stated.

"I hope this gate leads into the Spirit world," my brother wished and I did the same.

I reached the door examining it carefully. There were wanes of energy near; I paused and stand still for several moments before slowly outreaching a shaking hand to the large door and feeling the material. It was soft and extremely cold under my fingers.

The same time my fingers touch the portal I felt something like an electric current, passing through my body and I thought I heard someone screaming. I gasped feeling my heartbeats growing faster.

"This is _definitely_ a door to another dimension," I murmured.

"Rua, Ruka," the duel monster spirit lifted her head, "you have a special gift, use it well and wise to keep you and your friends safe. I don't know where this gate leads but since you want to get yourselves out of this world, you can push the gate to open."

I nodded and turned my head to my friend's direction. "Are you ready?" I asked them.

"I am!" Jack stated and everyone else nodded in agreement.

"Alright," I said and exerting pressure I push the door, which relented and opened widely spreading a white light.

"Good luck!" Fire Sorcerer wished us and I passed the door with my friends behind me.

I prayed silently to step into the Spirit Word but when I blinked my eyes I found myself in…

"An abandon village?" Aki murmured behind me.

"A bombing abandon village," Crow corrected and I sense Jack tensed.

Crow was absolutely right with the words he picked. I looked behind my shoulder and I gasped; the gate wasn't there, we were all alone in the middle of a scary world, with nothing familiar. It's dark and colder here. Not because it's physically cold but that does help, but also because unlike everywhere else, we know that people used to live here, but not anymore.

"Where everyone go?" Rua asked quietly and I felt a warning in my heart.

"Ruka," Jack turned to look at me, "is this the Spirit World?"

"No," I shook my head, "this place is so dark and…" I paused, biting my lips; _evil_! This is what I was sensing, but I think it's wise not to mention it.

"Damn!" both of Rua and Crow cursed.

"What are we going to do now?" Aki tried to hind the terror in her voice, but with no success.

"Come on, we have to look around for the next gate and soon," Jack said.

"We have to be careful," Crow warning us, "this place looks dangerous."

"Jack," Rua turned to the blond duelist, "I think this is the Dark Word," I gasped hearing my brother saying.

"The Supreme King's kingdom?" Aki wondered with fear.

Jack nodded "I agree with Rua"

"This isn't good," I whispered.

"No, it's not," Jack said, "so you and your brother must focus more to find the next gate and soon."

I nodded decisively and I closed my eyes trying to shut out myself, away to anything that might distract me. I knitted my hands in front of me close to my face in a pray position, opening myself and getting ready to explore this place. I sense my brother marching toward me and placing his hands above mine.

His ability was a mystery to all of us. From the two of us, I'm the only one with this kind of special gift of sensation, but apparently I was wrong. He has one too; maybe this is his secret power just like Jack's is the burning soul and Aki is psychics. But whatever it is, I'm glad I'm not alone and with Rua in my side, I feel stronger.

I focused again into this word's aura; a great power lies in these lands; waves of energy were blocking me away, but both of Rua and me together were able to overtake the rules of this world.

"Can you sense anything?" I thought I heard Jack's voice but I ignored it; I must stay focus.

"Give them some time Jack," Aki suggested.

"We are running out of time," he commented coldly and bit my lips.

He was right, so I must press myself more. This word is also aggressive like the Desert Word; a veil of mystery covering the secrets of this place. A force is wandering in the air, capable to destroy or create; depending on the way which someone will handle it. It's hard to see through this world, to feel its structure and find the next breakthrough.

But I won't give up. I pushed myself more and my brother did the same beside me. After some minutes I finally managed to pass the world's defense mechanisms and now I was able to feel anything.

"You have to hurry!" a strange voice echoed suddenly in my mind and pierced my thoughts.

I felt a pinch in my heart, as my blood run cold. This voice wasn't familiar at all, but somehow I wasn't scare of it; it wasn't creepy or evilly. If anything it came up with a warning and I felt why.

We are not alone or at least we won't be alone for long. We have to move faster. Rua squeezed my hands a little and I focused again entering into this world deepest secrets. Definitely we are not welcome here, but we didn't welcome to the previews dimensions either. So, I free my mind and along with my brother, explored everything around.

I sense the wildness, the hills, the forests, the rivers. It was both hard and easy to draw the map toward us, sometimes with and sometimes without details. I sense a darker area, a valley with a castle; the supreme King's old caste. He may defeated long ago, but his evil aura is still here ruling this world.

But it's not enough for us. We are searching for the next portal. A way out of this world to the next one and I wish, actually I hope with all of my heart, this exit leads us to the Spirit World. But I sense nothing near; at least nothing we were looking for.

"Run! Leave now!" the same voice for before shouted again warning me and immediately I knew why.

I broke my bonds with my brother and this world, opening my eyes with force taking a deep breath.

"Ruka," I heard my friends calling me but I stared into my brothers eyes.

He nodded; he sensed them too. "They don't know about us," he said and I nodded, turning my head.

"We must leave now," I informed the others, dropping the sound of my voice, "we are not alone, someone is coming and I can tell they are no friendly."

"Who is coming?" Aki asked couldn't hide how scared she was.

"We don't care about that yet," Jack too cut her off, "just run."

"Follow me," I ordered and all of us marched with rush among the houses.

To be honest, I had no idea where I was leading them, but right now I didn't really care. First we should get ourselves out of here in a safer place without unpleasant company and then both of me and Rua can try to spot the next gate. I can tell for sure that even the air of this world smells mystery and holds great defense powers. Without my brother, I wouldn't able to enter deep into this world's secrets.

"I can hear them. Who are they?" Aki asked as we walked amongst ruined walls of houses and narrow streets that were once crowded

"Or what are they?" Rua added as we took a break, looking around for some good hideout between the houses.

I tried to concentrate to identify which path is more secure without someone unwelcome, but this world prevents me from using my gift openly.

"I won't stay here to find out," the same time Jack spoke we heard a scream so loud that I had to cover my ears with my hands.

"What the heck was that thing?" Crow snarled.

"I don't want to find out," I muttered "This _thing_ must be close."

"Ruka," my twin was looking at me as his expression grew serious, "I can't sense much. I mean, I thought this way was clear too but apparently we both were wrong," he added and I nodded.

"What is this mean?" Aki asked.

"That means I have no idea where to lead us or hide us anymore," I explained sadly and scared.

I bit my lips, I can't allow myself get scare now; we have to keep going, even if I was never been the adventurous or the most courageous from my friends, now I found myself in the need to become one. I can be brave and strong, even if I'm panic-stricken.

"I still don't understand," Crow whispered.

"At the beginning I thought this way will leads us away from them, but now something else is ahead of us," Rua made it clearer, "this world mystifying everything."

Another howling was heard and the suspected threat in its complexion was now unambiguous. I peeked from the corner of the house to the street. We were in a small corridor, full of rubble between two houses trying to keep ourselves out of view. No one was walking in this street, but somehow I could sense the presence of many creatures near.

"It's clear for now," I informed the other, but to be completely honest and even if my eyes were showing the opposite, I had a strong feeling that this road was already full. _But how_?

"You think it's better if we move across the way, or stay here?" Aki sweated.

My gaze fell upon my brother, but he was looking at me with uncertainty written all over his face. I nodded understanding his misgiving fully.

"I don't know Aki," I shrugged.

"You are not helping," Jack gritted my teeth and I can say for sure and noticing the color in his voice testified that his patience was almost exhausted.

"Maybe we should stay here," Crow suggested unsure.

"We can't stay here," Jack stated, "those walls won't protect us forever. Anyone who crosses the road will see us," and I couldn't help but agree with her.

Heavy steps were heard and everyone froze in its place. No, this isn't good; I tried to peek back at the same direction where the steps were coming, but still I couldn't see anything or anyone, even though the sound only grew stronger, like someone or something was marching closer. And the strangest thing ever; I could sense it not only from the same direction, but from every direction around us.

I read in my brother's eyes the same sensation. I felt the panic slowly grabbing my heart and squeezing it hard. _What are we going to do now_?

"The door on you left!" the voice sounded again in my thoughts, making me turned my head. It was a ruined house with wild open windows.

"What's up with the door?" I asked feeling somehow idiot, since I was talking out loud to someone in my head.

"Ruka?" Aki called my name pulling me out of my thoughts, "are you ok?"

"Did you guys not hear it?" I asked my friends and seeing their faces, I can say I had my answer.

"Hear what?" Crow asked and Jack knitted his eyebrows.

"Get inside the house," the voice ordered but I didn't move, "Hurry!"

"In the house now!" I commanded my friends and they rushed to do what I told them.

"We are exposed here," Crow noticed, "the windows; everyone will see us."

I bit my lips, he was right, but… and only I can hear this voice.

"Hide behind the walls; I will try to distract them."

I hurried to stand with my back against the wall as my heart was beating ready to jump out of my body and everyone followed my lead. A bit later we heard noise outside and one minute later we heard noise and crowds shuttled and talking even if I couldn't catch up a single word.

"Kneel on the floor."

"Down!" I whispered as loud as I could.

"What is happening Ruka?" I sense Rua breathing in my neck, as he bent over me pressing his arms around me in a protective embrace.

What am I supposed to tell him now; that _a strange voice which echoing only in my head giving me directions_? Not the best answer ever but sooner or later I will have to spill the words.

"I can hear all this noise, but I can't see anything out there," Jack noticed as both of him and Crow at the other side of the wall were trying to peek outside.

"Nothing at all," Crow added with wonder.

"Hah! And it sound like there is a whole army out there," Aki groaned.

"Invisible?" Crow threw and idea.

"That could be at least a good explanation," I murmured. That explains also of why I have this feeling that the whole village in filled with not-really-friendly monsters.

My breath became heavier. What are we going to do know? How are we supposed to escape from an enemy we cannot feel anymore but most important we cannot see? And we can't stay here forever.

"Stay here hidden as much as you can," the voice heard again in my mind.

'_Who are those monsters outside and why it's invisible?_' I thought asking the voice.

"You have to go to the wild and keep yourself out of any indiscreet look."

Damn! What's going on? Who this voice belong to? Why never answer my questions? The only thing to which I can be positive is that this voice wants to help us. But still…

'_Why you are helping us?_'

"You have to pass the rocky wasteland and end up in a vast snowy wasteland."

'_Howwillweget there_?'

"Search for the ornate gate topped with a gargoyle."

'_Is the gate to another world_?'

"You will be in the need of a fast transportation. Use some monsters of yours to wing you there, but only high level dragons can find this place."

'_What's in there_?'

"I will try to open a gate to the world you seek for."

'_How do you know…?_' I wasn't able to finish my question. I was so confused.

"It's easy to find but you have to be careful; in there you are completely expose."

'_Is there any way to protect ourselves_?'

"Be careful, the fateof us alllays in your hands Elements Warriors." the voice started fainting away.

"How did you call us?" I spoke out loud this time as my heart skip a beat.

"This task is yours and if you do not find the way, then everything will change forever."

"Who are you?" I was puzzled.

My friends was staring at me like I was insane but I didn't pay attention. I didn't care. I was lost again; _we_ are lost again in a dark world, trying to hide form evil and invisible monsters, following advice from an unknown voice in my head and I was trying not to lose my mind or myself in this strange, darker realm.

I looked up my friends reading the anguish and confusion in their faces. I took a deep breath. I think it's time to explain them.

* * *

Oups! What is happening here? Another dimension and it's not the one they want. But they can't give up, can they? At least they have some help… but by whom? See you in one week with the next chapter!

_My thanks to: _**dub-step syndicate king**_, _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, and _**SamSam92**_ for their awesome reviews._

_My special thanks to: _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_ for her help when I was writing this chapter._

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway..._


	30. High level dragon

**Chapter 30 – High level dragon**

_Rua's Pov_

"Let me get this right," Jack ended up after my sister explained her strange behavior from before, "an unknown voice, which only you can hear, gave you the directions?"

She nodded saying nothing and I looked at her grim. We were still in the ruined house with the wide windows but thank Ra no one was after us anymore. After all we are hiding in this hideaway for hours. Whoever sneaked outside has already gone. Sure I can't sense their presence, like my twin does, but still I have this feeling which guiding my steps. Although I have no idea why, since I never noticed before that I also have a special gift.

Aki peeked from the window. "Still nothing," she informed us.

"Did you guys feel anything?" Crow asked.

"No," I shook my head, "till nothing," and Ruka nodded in agreement.

From the two of us she has the last word, but right now things are more complicated than any other time. The Dark Signers, the Ark Cradle, all the difficulties we faced years ago it's nothing compare to all this. We are traveling among the twelve Dimensions of our universe, searching for our friend and seeking all the answers in nonstop-growing-list-of-pending questions. Not to mention all the obstructions we were facing, passing from one world to another. If anything, we are all together now.

"I have no idea who was talking to me," Ruka mused, "but I have a feeling it's a female one."

"Call me crazy but I don't care to find out who is she," Aki commented glancing away. "Since she helped us," she explained.

"She did," Jack mused, "but she also said more things."

"She called us Elements Warriors," surprise and wonder was written in Crow's marked face.

"At least it started making sense," Jack was lost into his thoughts holding his chin with one finger on his cheek.

"Making sense?" Aki stared at him astonished, "how this is making sense to you Jack? Is it because Regulus mentioned something about the balance of the five Elements?"

"You have to admit at least there must be a connection," he defended himself to her sudden attack.

"A connection? Maybe, but that doesn't making me feel any better," Aki was both angry and sad, "Yusei is still missing and along with Regulus words we heard something new, about a Prophecy which refers to six warriors and now a strange voice in Ruka's head," she peeked on her with the corner of her eyes, "called us Elements Warriors. Is this makes sense to you?"

"Alright!" Jack lifted his hands in surrender. "What I meant was that we have some evidences here, which at least match," he corrected.

Aki glared at him again. I smirked seeing the great Jack Atlas blenching to a woman's temper.

"So we are the warriors of the Prophecy and apparently more," I concluded.

"Who knows," Crow shrugged. "Come on Jack, make the counting," and grinned to his friend.

Jack rolled his eyes taking a deep breath. "Well," he started, "there is Prophecy about a disaster to all the dimensions of our universe that caused from the _white rivers_…"

"I think if we found out what those _white rivers_ are which brought the upside down everywhere, then maybe we can finally realize what is happening and why it's happening," Ruka shared her thoughts.

"…In this Prophecy, six warriors appears as the ones who are going to travel among the worlds and fight to save the universe…"

"Apparently that's us," I said half excited and half scared.

"… Those warriors will hold powers like no others…"

"Seemingly it's Aki's psychic powers, Ruka has this special connection with the spirits and the Spirit world, your Jack reasonably is the burning soul, it appears that Rua has a gift like his sister, I have no idea about Yusei…" Crow recited, "And there is also me," he pointed himself, "which I'm sure I hold no special ability, so obviously I'm not one of those warriors."

"… But if we fail then the Balance of the Elements will be destroyed forever…"

"That far we know about the fire, earth, water and wind elements" Aki added "but we are clueless about the last one."

"… and now a strange voice which sounded only in Ruka's head…"

"No doubt she is the only one who can hear it because of her gift," I explained and she smiled at me sheepishly in relief.

"… Called us Elements Warriors…"

"Is it because the Balance of the Elements is in our hands?" Ruka mused, "Or more powers are lying within us and those are the _powers_ in the Prophesy?"

"Wow!" I commented, "I never thought about that."

"Me either," Aki waved her head.

"Nice counting Jack," Crow said scratching the back of his head and Jack rolled his eyes.

"So Ruka," I turned to her knitting my eyebrows. "That voice gave you the directions we need," it wasn't a question even though we have many question marks here.

"She gave me the exact description of the portal and how to get there at approx but we need a high level dragon to spot the exactly location of the gate."

"This will be a little difficult," Jack sighed, "we cannot call for our ace and Signer dragons."

"At least there is a good side," Crow tried his best to lightening our heavy atmosphere, "we have many winged monster to transfer us there," but not even his happy and funny companion couldn't help us right now.

Everyone pulled its gaze awkwardly glancing around apart from each other. The awful truth is still hanging above our heads and I can feel it, like a heavy burden on my shoulders.

"What are we going to do now?" I burst angrily.

"Damn!" Jack cursed hitting his fist to the nearby wall, "if only I could summon Red Demon dragon," he murmured.

"I have no other dragon in my deck," Crow groaned sadly, "only Black feather. You have any?"

"Except Black Rose I have only one more dragon," Aki informed "Blue Rose Dragon but it's a weak monster, only level four."

"It's not enough," Jack growled.

"I have only Ancient Fairy," Ruka lowered her gaze to the ground and I pressed a hand on her shoulder.

"How about you Jack?" Crow looked his friend grim.

"Hmmm," he hummed thinking his deck, "I have some dragons," he ended up but seeing his serious expression I came to the conclusion that none of them can be use for our purpose, "level 5 Vice Dragon and level 6 Strong Wind Dragon."

"Not good enough," Crow sighed disappointed, "we need at least a level seven monster."

"Rua?" Aki turned and looked at me like I was her last hope.

My heart tightened. How am I supposed to tell her that Life Stream dragon is unable to help us this time? Her eyes were burning me as she was looking at me like that. I took a deep breath.

"I…" I started but the words stuck on my throat, as I remembered something, "I have…" I hesitated, suddenly unsure of myself.

"Well," Ruka lifted her eyebrows in wonder, but I didn't move.

I was stood there absolutely astonished as if a bucket of ice water splashed all over my head. "Of course!" I muttered and shivered. All my friends looked me surprised waiting me to say more. "Of course!" I exclaimed jumping on my feet the same time feeling my heart ready to burst out from joy. This is that far the best news ever; since we passed through Momentum, finally I can feel that luck winking on us.

"Rua keep your voice down," Ruka advised and she was right but it was impossible right now.

"I have what we need," I said in hurry looking Aki, but she returned my gaze puzzled, "I have my dragon," I explaining.

"Rua," Jack knitted his eyebrows, "you can't call out your Signer dragon," Jack trying to be nice and patience with me but this time he was right and wrong.

"I know Jack," my voice was full of confidence, "I can't summon Life Stream Dragon but!" I lifted one finger in the air, "he is not the only high level dragon in my deck."

Ruka gasped and placed one hand on her mouth; she get what I meant.

"Y-you are right," Crow's voice slumped as he was looking at me with wide eyes.

"Life Stream is my Signer and ace dragon but it wasn't the first one."

Both Aki and Jack blinked and held their breath, as they finally realized.

I took my deck, held it with one hand and searching one specific card with the other, until I found it. I pulled it out and showed it to my friends. "Because my first ace monster used to be my Power Tool dragon!" I grinned.

"Brilliant!" Jack flashed a huge smile, something really rare for him.

"And since it's not my Signer dragon, I can easily summon it anytime I want."

"That's awesome," Crow raised his hand to high five mine.

"And exactly what we need," Aki laughed taking a deep breath at the same time.

My twin threw herself in my lap hugging me tightly and telling me how happy she was. Crow and Jack were looking at me with a way which made my chest filled with pride and happiness, but I focused my interest on Aki. I knew she had an eye on the raven-haired duelist years ago and now I can honestly say it's the first time, after we learn about Yusei's coma, that I saw her smiling naturally without forcing herself.

"Can I call him out now?" I asked when Ruka let me speak again and stood beside me.

Jack shook his head. "We are all tired and we need some rest. We will spend the night here," his gaze traveled around the ruined house, "not the best shelter," he commented, "we will use some of our supplies," only when he mentioned the food, I realized how empty my stomach was, "and tomorrow morning we will started our way to the gate."

Everyone nodded; even Aki. We all did our best to make this old house which is full of dust and dirt a little more comfortable and appropriate to sleep in. At the beginning I though both Aki and Ruka would start to complain, but Crow informed me about their little rest at the small cranny into the mountains of the previous dimension. So I guess this house, as ruined as it be, is far better than a cave.

"Ruka?" I muttered as we were all ready to fall asleep, except Jack who would stay awake as first guard. We already ate some food and I was feeling better but also really sleepy.

"Ummm," she hummed. She looked like I pulled her out of her thoughts.

"The one who talked to you before," I started with low voice watching not to wake up Aki who fell asleep the same time she closed her eyes.

"What about her?"

"She told you she will try to open up the gate for us to the Spirit world, right?"

"Not exactly," she corrected skeptical, "she said she will open the door for the world we are looking for."

"Different words with the same meaning," I murmured, "but how did she knew?"

"I asked the same question and many others but I get no proper answer. She kept her monologue like she didn't hear me or didn't care to give any or something else that we are missing it right now."

"But she helped us right? Back there with all those monsters"

Ruka nodded. "I don't know what to assume anymore; all this pressure is beyond my powers," I knitted my eyebrow in sympathy, "I'm scared Rua," she confessed, "I'm feeling this trip making me crazy and I will lose my mind in the end."

"It's ok," I tried to comfort her. "We are all scared."

"For you it's just something new, but for me…" she paused, trying to come up with the proper words, "Rua none of you have ever traveled to a different dimension, only I did and this thought doesn't making me feel any better. I'm the only one with some experience and I have to protect you all because of this and my gift too, but I'm not sure if I can handle it anymore," her voice cracked as she lowered her gaze looking away from me.

She was ready to collapse and I feel ashamed of myself; what kind of brother I am? My sister suffered all this time and I didn't even notice. I place both of my hands in her shoulder looking in her eyes, even if she was looking the ground. I was ready to say something encouraging when she spoke again.

"I'm scared Rua," she whispered again, "I feel I'm losing my mind. My gift is driving me crazy. I sense all the time that something terrible is going to happen and I can't figure it out what it is, I can't speak with Ancient Fairy or Regulus, we find out one mystery after another and more of them are following, we have no answers and worse, Yusei is still missing, his faith is still unsure, the time is against us; we have only days left but how many? The last day maybe is tomorrow or even today and everyone keep saying that we are the only ones you can make things right, but I'm not sure…" she started shivering under my hands as her voices came out dashed, "…I don't know what to do… if we won't make it, then Yusei…" tears run down her cheeks and I froze unable to do anything, "…Yusei will… and not only him but…" her sobs didn't allow her to say more.

I left her shoulders and embrace her. "Shhh, it's ok, everything will be ok," I bit my lips; I hate giving promises to which I wasn't sure, but I didn't know what else to say, "I'm here for you," she started crying silently moistening my blouse but I didn't care, "we all here for Yusei and we will try our best," I started stroking her back until her cry started to faint.

"I'm so scared," she stuttered again, "if we are the warriors of the Prophesy or the Elements Warriors and only we can travel between the twelve dimensions and everyone's safety is in our hands…"

"You are not alone Ruka," I pressed my arms around her tightly, "I'm with you and now I can help you more, I have those feelings too."

"I can't explain to you how I feel about it," she whispered "it's both comforting and helpful but also I know how this feels like; it's bad. You may not hear voices in your head like I do, but it's confusing and hurting, feeling all this pain in your heart, the hunch that we are not welcome in this place, we are not belong here but for an unknown reason every dimension seems to accepted our presence. This feeling is totally not the best and I'm sorry you have to feel it too. But why you too?"

"Yes, that was the other subject I wanted to discuss with you," now I was getting to the main point, "why I have this feelings like you?" I finally asked, "I mean, from both of us you are the gifted one, you have the ability to see and talk to Spirits and travel to the Spirit world anytime you want but since we pass through Momentum to the Desert world, I stared having those pinches in my heart like warnings," I made a small pause waiting for her to say something.

She stayed silence thinking without looking at me.

"I sensed the presence of those monsters in the desert, the next gate into the endless tunnels, I even sensed you along with Aki and Crow when you stepped into the previous dimension. Jack and I were ready to leave when I was sure we had to wait a little longer. All because of you."

"But it's good, right?" it was impossible to translate her expression. "If you didn't felt our presence then the most likely we wouldn't be together right now."

"Sure it is," I agreed, "but I'm still clueless, I don't know what is happening, I have those strange warnings in my heart but it's not as strong as yours. Sure it's stronger when I'm with you but still…"

She placed one hand on my shoulder trying to find my eyes with hers, "I don't know Rua, I can't be sure but we are twins," she explained with a strange voice, "we always sharing a special bond, even when I was lost into the Spirit world when I was little I was able to heard your voice only, not mom's or dad's voice, but yours!"

"So, I have this because of you?" I knitted my eyebrows wondering, "To be able to protect or help you?"

"Protect me, protect the others, I'm not sure but is grew and become stronger after we passed through Momentum."

"So, this is my ability? My secret power which I have only away from earth?" I was puzzled, "maybe this is my part into this mess."

"I'm not sure if we can handle it anymore… all this pressure… all this responsibility…" she continued between her sobs with small braeks to take breaths, "It's our duty so shield the energy from the _white rivers_ away… but if we fail…"

"We won't fail," I heard a voice in my ear and in the silence of the night, I jumped from fear.

"Jack you want me to have a heart attack?" I gasped with Ruka still in my arms.

"I heard your little conversation," he said and his expression was serious.

"Jack…?" my sister's voice choked.

"You weren't alone and you won't be in the future."

I lifted one eyebrow. He wasn't angry as he usually is, he was staring at Ruka; not glaring or something but he was looking at her with understanding.

"All of us holds a strange power and has its own unique reason of being here," he continued. "We are together into this mission everyone has its own part from this duty and we will fight together, like one spirit."

"Regulus said that to me." my sister wiped her tears.

"And I'm reminding it to you. Now get some sleep we have a dig day tomorrow," Jack ended up and turned his attention outside.

* * *

_I made a new POLL, PLEASE vote! it's really important and the results will affect my decision a lot!_

_Please take a look at my forum: forum/Jewels-of-Love/128682/ _

_I made it to share an idea I have with all of you. You are all welcome to join, follow, read, share your ideas, and even write! Thank you all!_

_My thanks to: _**dub-step syndicate king**_, _**PrincessWindNight**, **Gotta be Annoying**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_ for their reviews _

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway..._


	31. Flying to the gate

**Chapter 31 – Flying to the gate**

_Rua's POV_

"Rua wake up," I heard, feeling at the same time that someone was shaking me, hard.

"Are you sure he is sleeping?" Aki asked with a hint of worry in her voice "It's been ten minutes now."

"No, he is sleeping," Ruka assured her.

"Ummmm," I hummed, irritated. I rolled onto my stomach; trying my best to open my eyes.

"Finally!" Jack snapped.

"You are lucky Rua, Jack was ready to dump cold water onto you head," Crow winked with a smirk.

"What?" I yawned rubbing my eyes with my hand.

"Never mind," Crow said, indifferently and got off the house. I stared at the door with wide eyes. _What the heck_?

"It's ok Rua, no one is here, so come on," my sister pushed me to get up and to stand on my feet. I yawned again feeling exhausted.

"Ruka it's still dark outside," I groaned, "What happened? Can't we wait until morning?" I asked with hope because I definitely need more sleep here.

"On your feet Rua," Jack commanded and my next yawn stuck in my lips as an invisible force made me to obey immediately "we are leaving now and it's time to summon your dragon" he stated following his old teammate.

I looked around still unsure of what to do.

"It was Jack's idea," Aki explained seeing my confusion, "we will leave as long as it's dark outside to avoid hostile eyes seeing us."

"Aw!" I reacted "can I eat something at least?" I asked as my stomach growled loudly.

My sister rolled her eyes and giggled. "Your stomach can wait Rua, but the sun won't,"

I was ready to disagree when Aki spoke again. "You can eat on board; Crow will summon some of his monster to fly us there following your lead."

"Ok!" I pouted and yawned for one last time before pulling out my deck and searching for my card.

"You guys coming?" Crow hissed.

Aki hurried and gave me some of our supplies. "We already ate," she informed me and marched outside of the house to the main -but also ruined- street, followed by Ruka and I.

Jack was there too and Crow had already called out some of his monsters. I saw his Black Feather's, Armored Wing and Arms Wing; both strong and big enough to ride and carry us safety.

"Call your monster Rua." Jack and I exchanged one serious look and I nodded decisive.

I pulled my card out from the top of my deck and lifted in the air; calling the monster's name at the same time, "Power Tool dragon!" I shouted and the next minute my ex ace appeared in a flash before our eyes; screaming with force.

I stared at him flying into the sky; feeling somehow lighter inside. It's the first time that my friends need help and only I can give it to them. This feeling was both exiting and scary, along with the responsibilities.

"Alright," Jack took the first word, "we will try to share the burden, so Crow will ride with you on the Power Tool at the front," Jack informed, "Aki will be with Ruka next, and I'll be at the end alone."

"Will you be ok with Crow?" Aki asked me.

"Sure," I assured her with a grin lifting my thumb.

"If anything happens in the air, _do not stop_. Keep flying, ok?" Jack continued, "We don't care as much if someone sees us from the ground, but if they start causing trouble and summoning monsters, then Crow and I will face it. And no matter what, stick together, understood?" everyone nodded.

"It's really important to stay together," Crow noted tensed. "Only Power Tool can find the way so try not to split up."

"Ok," I nodded and ride my dragon which bowed as Crow hopped on behind me.

"Ready?" Jack asked.

"Yes!" Aki assured, everyone followed her example and nodded.

"Go!" the blond duelist prompted.

"Power Tool Dragon," I shouted exiting, "fly away and show us the way to the next portal."

Cold wind hit me sharply in the face as my monster got off the ground with a loud clamor and I narrowed my eyes trying not to close them completely. I wanted to see everything from above, all the way until the next portal. The flying feeling was amazing; I couldn't help but enjoy it to the max taking deep breaths from the clear air. As my dragon climbed higher and higher the whole world unfurled below like a gray map. The bombed abandon village was already behind us and now mountains, hills and dry empty lands were revealed underneath.

"Are you ok Crow?" I called over my shoulder.

"Perfect," he mocked.

"I'm serious," I was trying to hold my giggles. Sure he wasn't not enjoying it, but I really loved this feeling.

"Well," he started taking a deep breath, "I've been better."

"I thought you like flying," I noted, looking over my shoulder at his expression. He wasn't really pleased with the whole situation.

"I do," he said flatly

"Ah! Well," I smiled casually, "I suppose it's really different and more uncomfortable than riding a duel runner."

"Exactly," he agreed grim, "plus our flight purpose and the remained danger."

His words took the grin from my lips. _Yeah!_ I was so exiting that for a moment I forgot that we are still in such a horrible and aggressive world. At least the sense of flying can pay me back, a little. I wouldn't mind doing this all day; it was amazing, I was so… free!

But after a few hours I had to reconsider my views. The wind was still blasting in my face; at the beginning I liked it but after a while it was really irritating. I was cold from the wind, my fingers were frozen, making my grip on my dragon a painful task. Plus the fact that I was feeling cramped, hungry and thirsty. I was looking forward to stopping for a break. We must have flown for a few hours, but there was still darkness everywhere. Actually I noticed that the clouds were covering the whole sky like a thick blanket, impenetrable even by sunlight. The name Dark World is not random. I huffed loudly; Jack's idea to travel in the dark was completely unnecessary.

Now our view changed a bit and I was able to see forests at the roots of the mountains and far at the horizon, beyond some hills was lying…

"The rocky wasteland!" Crow exclaimed in my ear, and I sighed relieved, "Finally, because I can't wait to step my feet on the ground."

"Huh! I know feeling," I chuckled and after some minutes our transportation rides landed in a small hill with a huge tree at the top.

I hopped and immediately started waking here and there rubbing myself at the same time, trying to make the blood move faster in my veins and warm myself.

Ruka and Aki collapsed on the ground coughing and shuddering. I ran over to Ruka hugging her to make her feel better.

"This world seems endless," Aki gasped trying to catch her breath.

"If it wasn't that voice in Ruka's head to help us, I bet we would never been able to find the way," Crow noted stretching himself.

"Sure," Said Jack flatly, "we will rest and eat something here for a while, and afterwards we'll continue," he informed and we nodded.

In one hour we were on our monsters again. After our little break everyone was feeling better and our way seems less painful. I noticed more light straight ahead like the whole area was somehow brighter in the lack of light. I narrowed my eyes trying to focus my gaze and realize what was that. But it was Ruka who gave the answer.

"The snowy wasteland," she informed.

"This is no snow," Crow pointed looking down, "its sand, but with a white color."

"The gate is near," Ruka smiled widely, "we are getting close, I can feel it."

"I feel it too," I flashed her a smile lifting my thumb.

Yes, I felt that something was near, as waves of pure energy were plopping all around from the time we reached this snowy sand. I closed my eyes and focused, sensing my sister doing the same. By trying to read the immediate environment, I sensed something else too; something less bright and pleasant. Ruka went tense and my heart pounded in my chest.

"Over there!" Aki shouted with a hint of joy in her voice.

I opened my eyes and let my jaw dropped. A gate was erected in the middle of nowhere, like a huge door. The strange metal even though it was black, somehow was shinning and it radiated light even from afar.

"That's it," Crow cheered, "we made it."

But I wasn't so sure. I peered over my shoulder my sister and she returned the same puzzle gaze. Now I'm sure that something is wrong; something evil lurked straight ahead waiting for us to get closer. Maybe we should stop but we can't; not now that we are so close. Our monsters flied with speed, covering the remaining distance, but at the same time leading us to something suspicious, almost dark and infernal. I groaned, confused.

"Stop!" my sister screamed in fear. "Stop it now!"

She was pale as ghost when I turned my head to her. Aki was holding her as she was struggled to push her away. She looked like she was out of control, or not the right mind.

"We can't stop now," Jack yelled, "we will face them."

"What he hec-" I began but the words just like my breath stuck in my throat as my heart filled with fear.

There it was; the portal was straight ahead but a dozen of monsters were lined in the front of it and it seemed like they were guarding it. I recognized some of them: Goldd the Wu-Lord, Gren the Tactician, Renge the Gatekeeper, Sillva the Warlord, Latinum the Exarch, Snoww the Unlight and Broww the Huntsman; all of them monsters of the Dark World and I bet that none of them are friendly.

Our monsters stopped in the air and started drawing some circles in the sky. I swallowed and looked Crow over my shoulder, despair was written all over my face and anger on his.

"Well, well, well!" I heard Goldd talking and my heart must have skipped a beat at the coldness of his voice, "So you are the little brats who sneaked into our world."

"You thought you can get away?" Sillva mocked us laughing evilly.

"To bad for you since we were excepting you, to show up," Latinum snarled anxiously, as if he enjoyed watching us and was running out of patience for what was about to happen next.

I swallowed the bile in my throat. _They were expecting us?_ This only means that they set up a trap; they knew that we were trying to search for the next passage.

Crow cursed for behind at the top of his voice, as probably came to the same conclusion.

"Crow!?" Jack shouted from below, and the two men exchanged a tense look.

I eyed both of them carefully seeing them communicate in silence. At the end, both nodded decidedly and I blinked a couple of times, feeling my heart beat faster, knowing what was on their minds. I looked straight ahead again sighing heavily. The gate was only meters away and an army of scary monsters was between us, blocking the way. Our only solution was to fight back. I swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Come on Power Tool-" I started but Crow slammed fast a hand over my mouth and my voice died.

"Remember, just lead the way. Don't put our transportation on the spot," he shouted above my ear.

"O-ok."

"And leave the battle to me and Jack," he added sharply.

I nodded and heard both Crow and Jack summon some more monsters which appeared along with a bright flash of white light.

Sillva and Latinum released an attack, but thank Ra it was not in our direction.

"Now Strong Wind Dragon!" Jack shouted.

"Black-Lance Blast's! Black Spiral!" Crow commanded.

I watched with horror as Armored Wing swerved back with a sharp dip to avoid the force of the Dark monsters attack.

"Ruka!" I yelled.

"We are all right," Aki assured but her words weren't enough to persuade me.

I tried to stay focused and drive Power Tool away from the battle field. Another torrent of sound deafened as Jack summoned another monster to fight back. From the muffled yell, I thought Jack or Crow stopped at least one of the monsters but there was no time to turn and look.

This battle wasn't like the others of my past. It was worst and not without a reason. It was worse than the battle against the Dark Signer Rudger, which I offered to fight instead of Ruka and worst than the Battle against Aporia. Even both of my ex duels wasn't something happily to remember as my life was in the spot just like now but if anything I was facing human beings not a half dozen of evilly monster of the Dark World in another dimension, riding one of my favorite monsters. And with all this I had my mind on Ruka and Aki too.

"Its not working!," Jack shouted from far away, "No matter what we do, they'll keep attacking the girls, not us or our monsters."

I froze. "Crow!" I shouted and turned my head to peek on him over my shoulder, "We should land." I said in hurry

"If we do, we will lose the advantage of the high grounds," Crow shook his head.

"Maybe, but the girls will be safe," I protested.

"Rua!" Aki shouted and I heard clearly the fear in her voice.

I did my best to turned my dragon and look at her and from what I saw I realize why she called me. My sister was in her arms with closed eyes.

"Ruka!" I yelled.

A huge ball of dark fire ejected from the monster which just laughed evilly.

"Look out!" Crow warned as Power Tool made a dangerous maneuver in the air.

I nearly fell and I wraped my arms and legs around my monster but my mind was on my sister; no doubt she had another vision or something. What a bad timing!

"I think her mind isn't here," Aki shouted, as loud as she could, trying to keep her balance on Armored Wing and holds Ruka the same time, "She is whispering, I believe she is hearing the voice again," I was right then, "she is saying to go straight to the gate."

"What are you waiting them? Go now!" Jack yelled and Aki nodded, "We will follow!"

Armored Wing flew with great speed and with a deafening sound the gate began to open revealing a deep black gap inside.

"Yes!" Crow shouted, "We're close!"

My heart bounced in my chest. _We're close_, all we need is some minutes. My dragon was in the same distant form the gate as the girls were, only higher. Just a little more and we would be in the gate.

"I don't think so!" Broww laughed evilly releasing another attack.

"Strong Wind Dragon now," Jack ordered his monster to fight back but failed the target as the wind hit the metal of the gate and fire back on...

"RUKA!" Aki screamed the same time which my heart filled with terror.

Jack screamed, Crow screamed, I even heard myself screamed even if I wasn't realizing it. The sound suddenly hushes, even if I was sure there was a lot of noise. For what happened next I'm not really sure. Armored Wing was hit by a fire and wind ball at the same time; Aki nearly fell but managed to warp her arms around the monster leaving Ruka. My sister was flying into the gate but she wasn't just flying; she was falling.

My mind stuck just like all of my thoughts and only my instinct remain to move my hands and my feet like I was a puppet. I saw flashes, I sensed Crow go tense and driving our dragon as I didn't know what I was doing anymore.

"Rua what are you thinking?" his voice reached me for far away but I ignored it. "Stay back!" Crow ordered but I didn't pay attention, my logic wasn't controlling my body anymore.

Voices were echoing in a blur but I pushed them all away. It was impossible to recognize who was shouting at me. I wasn't the master of my body anymore; I couldn't help it. I took a deep breath and jumped. I knew it was reckless and stupid and more, but I dived into the void.

* * *

_I want to thank everyone who stuck with me giving me strength and motivation to keep writing! Your support means a lot to me. Just a little more patience, answers are coming!_

_Also, please vote on my POLL, it's very important! And you can follow me in my new FB page here: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** (remove spaces) _I will appreciate it if I saw your likes in my page and my posts :)_

_My thanks to: _**dub-step syndicate king**_, _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_, _**Gotta be Annoying**_, _**Shadow Queen Darkness Warrior**_, _**Karlina101**_ and _**YugiohObsessed**_for their reviews!_

My special thanks to my lovely beta: **_azure blue espeon !_**

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	32. Familiar ground

**Chapter 32 – Familiar ground**

_Rua's POV_

At the rate I was falling, I reached my half-unconsciousness twin and I stretched out my arms to grab her wrist with one hand and locked the other on her waist pressing her body on mine protectively as we both fell into the darkness.

"Now!"

"All together!"

Again I had no idea who was shouting. Voices of anguish, cries and screams of fury mixed with the howling wind as I was lost in a whirl of colors. I passed through the gate, but this trip was far different than the others, and Ruka was with me. I focused into her, pressing my arms around my sister, like she was the only steady thing.

I wasn't sure if it was her screams or my own that echoed within the gate, until finally I felt myself slamming flat into the ground. My face pressed into something soft and wet, and immediately I realized it was grass. I had closed my eyes while the gate transferred me and Ruka and I kept them close; even when I heard heavy thuds near me. I didn't care, I wasn't thinking, I held my sister like nothing else was matter to me right now.

"Where are we?" Crow's voice came from somewhere near.

"Did we make it?" Aki was gasping for air.

"Are you all here?" Jack yelled.

My ears were buzzing. I wanted to answer but my got voice stuck in my throat. I forced myself to open my eyes and look down in my arms.

"Ruka?" I called her tentatively, my heart kicked in my chest out of fear.

Her eyes twitched and I breathed out in relief.

"Ruka?" I called her again, still scared.

She stirred and started shaking. Instead of answering me she began crying loudly. I hugged tighter and robbed her back. "Shh!" I tried to comfort her, "I'm here, you're safe. There is no need to be afraid anymore."

"I'm not crying because I'm afraid Rua," she whispered between her sobs, "I'm crying because I'm happy!" she released a light chuckle.

I looked at her, confused. And it was only when I saw the bright smile in her face I felt it. This world has nothing in common with the previous ones; it wasn't aggressive or dark. In fact it was the exact opposite. Friendly with the sun in the middle of the sky, no worries and no fear of the unknown. She nodded still smiling and crying, her reaction was the best proof; finally we stepped into familiar ground. Something heavy lifted up from my shoulders and I was able to breathe with all of my power.

"Did we make it?" someone asked

I was so happy and lost in my own world, that I had no idea who was asking.

We _did _make it and we _are_ here. Alive, unspoiled and all together. Is there any way things become better? I wondered and I got my answer the next second.

"Ruka," we all heard a strong but clam voice, and in my ears sounded like a sweet melody, after all the agony and fear that we had been through.

"Regulus!" My sister shouted happily and did her best to stand in her feet. Pushing me away she ran to meet him.

"You finally found your way."

It wasn't the first time I was seeing the big armed lion, but I gasped with awe. My sister quickly wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as she leaned forward to hug him and burying her head into his rich golden mane.

"I'm so glad to be here again," she cried with joy and relief, "to see you Regulus… I'm so… so…" she paused as happiness took the right words from her mouth.

"I know," the big lion bowed his head, "I'm glad to see you too."

"Is it true?" Crow asked, "We made it? We finally are here?"

"You want more proofs you idiot?" Jack chuckled, "We made it, we _are _here!" he stated.

"We made it?!" I repeated excited taking deep breaths, as my heart started dancing crazily in my chest, until I couldn't hold it anymore. "We made it!" I exclaimed.

"Into the Spirit world!" Aki's voice trembled but only because she started crying and laughing the same time holding her chest, "I can't believe it, we are finally here, after all this fear, troubles, and anxiety," she closed her eyes wiping her tears of joy with her hands. "Hold on Yusei," she whispered, "we're coming for you."

"Yes, you did it well," Regulus congratulated us all and now I found myself laughing, joining Aki along with Jack and Crow.

"Ouf!" the orange-haired duelist wiped his forehead, "that was close."

Now that we all were safe and far away from the battle field, I had the feeling that all the past days were nothing more than a nightmare.

"Closer than we ever were," Jack remarked and then turned to glare at me. I bit my lips, "What you did was extremely foolish!" his voice cut like a knife.

"I…" I opened my mouth to protest, but he raised one hand to make me hush.

"But it was also extremely brave of you for doing it," he added and I let my jaw drop.

"T-thanks." I muttered uneasy robbing the back of my head.

"Yes, but don't take it on and try to play hero again," his expression was hard.

"Is she ok?" Crow waved his head, pointing my twin.

"I think she is," I nodded looking my sister, who was still crying in Regulus mane.

"And if she's not, we are in the Spirit world, she will be soon," Jack concluded.

"Yup!" Crow huffed reviled and his face grew serious, "and now what?" he wondered, "I guess we're still in time but what next? Are we safe here at least?"

"For now, yes," the armed lion answered and we all turned our attention to him, "and we still have time but not for long. The fate of everyone is at the edge of the knife."

"But there is still time, isn't there?" Aki asked, as a shadow of horror passed through her eyes, "time to save Yusei?"

"Come, we must leave," Regulus ignored her question which only meant bad news. Maybe there is still time but the future is still unclear.

"Where are we going?" Ruka lifted her head as she finally left lion's neck and stepped back.

"It's time to get some answers, but not from me," Regulus explained, "I have orders to take you there as fast as we can."

"Ancient Fairy's orders?" my twin asked but he shook his head.

"Ancient Fairy and the rest of the Signer Dragons," he waved his hairy head toward us, "are not around here."

"Where are they?" Jack knitted his eyebrows.

"They left days ago," the lion said and.

"Then whose?" Aki asked.

"Someone's who can explain almost everything," Regulus replied, "and who is looking forward to see _you _Ruka."

"Me?" she pointed her chest puzzled, "Why?"

"You will see," the armed lion managed a slight smile, "when we get there. Come, we have no time to rest," he added and turned to show the way.

My sister scratched the back of her head and shrugged. We all turned our gazes on her in a silence question and she smiled and nodded. Immediately like she broke a spell or something we all looked relieved and let her take place behind Regulus with the rest of us following.

I took a closer look around. We were in the middle of a valley, surrounded by mountains, but this world was far better than the previous ones. I took a deep breath filling my lungs with fresh air.

"So," I started, still looking around, "this is the Spirit World, huh?" I asked but I didn't give time to my sister or Regulus to reply, after it wasn't necessary, I knew that this was the Spirit World. "It's very pretty here," I noticed.

"Yes," Aki nodded in agreement, "All those years ago we were hearing about Ruka's secret world and now we finally have the chance to see it with our own eyes."

"You are lucky Aki," my twin smiled, "and yes, this world it's really beautiful and its great relief to see the sun still in the sky."

"The last time I saw the sun, was at the Desert dimension," Crow muttered.

"Let's all hope that the sun will remain in the sky," Jack said and I sensed a strange tone in his voice.

We all were really happy to be here finally. After all this anguish and fear we are here and this world is still untouchable from the white rivers. Jack's words only took away the smile of my face.

"Can you be a little bit more pessimist Jack?" Crow said sarcastically.

"What?" the blond duelist reacted, "It's true."

"Yeah, but we need more positives thoughts here," Crow glared at his childhood friend.

"Jack is right Crow," the armed lion said calmly, "we tried really hard to keep the sun above our heads."

"What happened here Regulus?" Ruka asked. "Sure Spirit World looks like it's still hanging out, but still I sense a change."

"You are right Ruka," the armed lion threw her a sympathetic look, "the outside destruction affected every world, some more than the others and both of Ancient Fairy and I, along with the rest Signer Dragons did our best to keep our dimension as safe as we can, but I'm not sure anymore."

"Ummm… Regulus?" Aki asked sheepishly, "can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything you want, but I might not know the answer."

"Um, you know, we have many questions actually, so I'm not sure what to ask, but can you tell us everything you know about all this destruction?"

"I have some questions Regulus," my sister gushed, "first, why you couldn't come to me when I was still in Earth? Why it was so hard?"

"Before I say anything that took place into the Spirit World, I want to know everything about your travels until you came here," the lion requested.

We all let Ruka to recount our story as we all kept following Regulus. My twin needed some a couple of hours to tell him everything as the lion kept stopping her several times to ask more and Ruka was trying to explain everything without messing a single detail. Many times she asked for help to fill the gaps in her memory until the armed lion was fully satisfied.

We were walking, time was passing and the sun was ready to touch the ground far away at the horizon when Ruka reiterated her question.

"Tell me Regulus, why you couldn't come to me when I was still in Earth?"

"Hmm," our leader hummed and took a deep breath before continued with state calm voice. "When the whole incident started the gates of this world opened and the energy, the same energy which entered to your world, came to our own and caused many problems. The balances were almost reversed, nothing was safe anymore. We had very difficult days trying to boost our defenses."

Regulus was still leading us as he explained everything he couldn't explain before. Ruka was hooked by his words and seeing her face I can say that she was extra worrying too. I can't blame he for this, she is connected with this world more any of us.

"What happened?" She asked and fear was dropping from her voice.

"The sun almost disappeared that day," Regulus said everyone gasped, "storms, tornadoes, disasters everywhere. The gates of the world were opened and from anywhere spirits were disappearing within vortexes, even the mountains shuffled around as earthquakes came and left within seconds."

"My Ra!" I muttered and swallowed.

"Incidents like this one, which we called them Waves, were repeated several times," the big lion continued.

"So…"Ruka mused, "that means that a Wave, as you said, came to our own world, right? And you used the energy of that Wave to come in contact with me?"

"Exactly, all the energy that went into your world opened the gate through Momentum. The Wave hit the earth, but you were lucky for it was only one Wave. Here we faced many of them and every time Spirit World was less the same."

"What you mean less the same?" Crow asked.

"Duel monsters spirits went missing, absorbed into vortexes and portals, perhaps into other worlds."

"Sure to other worlds," Jack affirmed, "in one of our previous dimensions we met some spirits that traveled there against their will."

"Yes, you said that before, and so our assumptions are correct. But the bad news is that we do not know in which world they went."

"And what happened here? You once told me that Ancient Fairy needs your help." Ruka inquired.

"Ancient Fairy and I were trying to fight back the Waves of energy using our own power. We tried to close the gates and keep the spirit safe," Regulus explained, "our efforts were more than exhausting and required great personal power and inner strength, so I could visit you in your world from mine."

"I understand now," Ruka's voice almost crack, "and though your work was so important here, trying to keep the Spirit World safe, however you came to me."

"It was very important to warn you Ruka, I had no choice. There was no minute to lose."

"So, when the Wave hit the earth, it was easier for you to travel through the already opened gate to come to Ruka, right?" Aki concluded.

"Right," the armed lion affirmed, "the gate was opened so there was no need for me to pay for it in an attempt to come to you. It was a good chance and I grabbed it."

"And I'm glad for it, even if I'm not glad about the whole chaos which caused because of that Wave." Ruka managed a slight smile.

"But can you tell us why all this is happened at the first place?" Aki asked anxiously and I sense everyone got tense. "We heard so many strange things, about a Prophesy, about six warriors, you also referred to the Elements too, but we are lost and clueless of what is happing."

"Or why is happing?" I asked with passion, remembering the _white rivers _stuff.

"We cannot deny that everything is hanging from a thin line now," The lion avoided answering, "I'm not the right one to explain all this to you, but you will find out soon."

"Soon?" Jack asked icily.

"Yes, soon," Rugulus said again, "in fact very soon, we almost there."

"Almost where?" Crow stated looking around and I did the same trying to spot anything that my look like our destination.

But all I saw was a forest at the end of the valley. I heard Regulus chuckle.

"At our last dimension this voice in my head helped us," Ruka said suddenly, "I thought I was a female one, but I'm not so sure anymore, I was too scared back there to think straight. Is it possible… I mean…" she paused, hesitated to make her question.

"Yes?" Regulus prompted.

"This friend you said," Ruka took a deep breath, "who want to see us, especially me and who can explain everything, is he the one who helped us, back at the Dark World?" she finally asked.

Her words almost shock me but it was a decent question. At the last dimension didn't pay much of attention to find out who was talking to her, as long and she or he was helping us. But know I found myself wondering who might be, so I opened eyes and ears waiting to hear Regulus replied.

"Why don't you ask yourself when we get there?" was all he said and I pouted.

"Still riddles," I muttered wryly.

"Not for long" Regulus flashed me a smile, "we almost there, look!" he waved his head and all of us turned our eyes and gasped.

There, at the top of small hill was a castle, but not a shining one. The castle was a bit dark with a couple of sharp tops and looked quite creepy.

"Hmm," Ruka hummed, "this is the Ape King's castle," she added and look the armed lion utter confusion.

"Yes, Ruka," Regulus replied softly, "this is our way. We are all headed to the castle of the Zeman the Ape King's castle."

"But why?"

"Our old friend is waiting us there," he explained and turned to take a small path.

"Great, more riddles," I whispered, as we all kept following him.

"Soon all of your question will be answered," Regulus commented to my words with calm but also serious voice, "but until now you were walking into the easy part, because the hardest is coming soon."

We looked each other puzzled seeking for a logical explanation but ignorance and wonder was written on our faces. At the end we all turned on Ruka but she returned our confused gaze and shrugged.

"I think our way until here wasn't exactly easy," Jack protested.

"Here we are," Regulus ignored the blond duelist as we all reach at the front gate of the creepy castle, "our friend is waiting us inside," he added.

He pushed the door to open at the last light, before the sun disappeared and the moon appeared shining in the dark sky. I felt my tiredness trying to take me away but I did my best to keep focused as we all exchanged a confused look before with each other before we followed the armed lion inside.

My eyes widened in shock and awe as I stepped into the main hall. I sensed Ruka shivering behind me. The room was illuminated by many torches, the walls were covered by empty, stone tablets and at the very end I spotted a huge throne. In front of the throne at the floor was a large circular gate, like a pool, the water inside was agitated, surrounded by eight torches. A human male form was standing in the middle holding a long wand, his back turned to us.

"Ruka my child, it's been years," he said turning slowly to face us and my jaw dropped when I saw his face, hearing several gasps from behind. "You've changed, you've grown up into a beautiful young lady," he noticed examining her carefully.

I turned to my sister confused and I saw her smiling. Clearly she knew him, because she nodded before opened her mouth to speak. "But you didn't change a bit," and smiled with warmth.

* * *

_I'm really for my late update, (time sucks, ignore this part!). Guys thank you so much for sticking with me all this time, supporting my work. I'm really trying my best. From now on the answers are coming, I will explain everything!_

…

_Ok, this is my sixth contest: the first who will find who this man is, will win the right to do me a question in a PM about my story and I will answer. The contest begins from now and until I post the next chapter. Have fun with your guesses!_

_Note__: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

…

_You can follow me in my new FB page here: __www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime / 517827508268822 (remove spaces) __I will appreciate it if I saw your likes in my page and my posts :)_

_My thanks to:_**L0calH0ll0wBu5t1ng .Corp-****LHBC**_, _**Karlina101**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**The Man with Imagination **_and _**Gotta be Annoying **_for their reviews!_

_My special thanks to my lovely beta: **azure blue espeon** !_

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	33. Hyper-fibers

**Chapter 33 – Hyper-fibers**

_Jack's POV_

"But you didn't change a bit Torunka," Ruka smiled widely to the old man.

I lifted an eyebrow. So this is her old friend who helped her saved Regulus by the effect of the Cursed Needle around its ankle and all together frees Ancient Fairy from her Rock Stone imprisonment.

I confess that I wasn't expecting it. I didn't see that coming. But then again, I never asked Ruka who this Torunka was and knowing Ruka and her deck, I always have a hint that this friend was someone like her. I was never expecting to come face to face with…

"Dark Sage?" Rua exclaimed with joy and awe, pulling me out of my thoughts, "You are the dark Sage?!"

"You must be Ruka's source of strength I supposed. Your twin sister mentioned you at our first meeting," the old man gave us a bright smile.

"He is," Ruka affirmed as her cheeks gained a pink hue.

Her brother flashed her, a huge smile and turned to the wizard again. "I can't believe I'm meeting one of the rarest monsters of duel monster. Of course Ruka is better in history than I am, but the only known time that Dark Sage were set in a duel, was by the king of game, Yuugi Mouto, when he was dueling his best friend."

Rua was looked like he was under ecstasy or something. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh yes! I'm familiar with this game you humans created. But real life is not a game."

"It was your orders which Regulus was following?" I suddenly said.

"My orders indeed."

"So, this means that you can explain us what is happening?" Crow asked with hope.

"Or why it's happening?" Rua gushed.

"But most important how can we help?" his twin added.

"And how can we save Yusei?"

_Of course! What else Aki would ask?_

The old man stayed quiet for a while exchanging a startled glance with Regulus before nodded. "The time has now come for you to know the whole story behind the last weeks' events."

I heard everyone holding their breath.

I breathed in deeply through my nose before breathing out, finally in relief. It's time, after one and half freaking months, it's time for some answers.

"I will tell you everything I know, but you have to prepare yourselves for what you are about to hear," the old man warned us.

I frowned, feeling that soon I would come face to face with something really unpleasant.

"We are ready Torunka. We left the earth, we walked for days in a vast desert, we faced monsters and were held prisoner before we slipped from one world to another trying to find a way to come here. I think that after the previous days, I can hear and accept anything," Aki assured.

"Power within. I can sense it to all of you," the old man murmured.

"Please Torunka, tell us what happened? What caused all this?" Ruka's voice was filled with bitterly.

Dark Sage took a deep breath throwing us a sad look, opening his mouth again. "Hyper-fibers!" he said and I grimaced, puzzled than ever, "This is what caused all this chaos and mess to every corner of this universe."

We stayed silent looking each other with the same bewildered look on our faces.

"What are the Hyper-fibers?" Rua asked after a while.

"It's been also known as the _white rivers _and in fact are rivers of energy; simple, pure energy that flows throughout the universe and it's been offer to all the living creatures, from the microscopic world to whole planets," the old man explained.

My breath stuck in my throat as became heavier. It's not the first time hearing something like this. I looked my friends and waved my head seeing their puzzled expressions. I can say for sure, we still have a lot to hear.

"The _white_ _rivers_ have their own separate streams among the stars and passed through specific parts on universe's map."

My heart kicked on my chest. For some reason Dark Sage's words were somehow familiar. Like it wasn't the first time I was hearing a similar story, although I can't explain why. My memory wasn't helping me right now.

"The scientific name is Hyper-fibers, but it's also known as the _energy of the stars_ too," the old man added and this time my heart skipped a beat.

"Oh no!" I face-palmed as my fade memories started to gush at the surface one by one, making me losing my self-control.

I can't believe it. I simply can't! _How is this possible?_ So close! I was so close and yet I didn't even notice. _How could I been such a fool?_

"Damn!" I shouted and cursed at the top of my voice, feeling my temper taking the last drop of my self-restraint.

"Jack? Are you ok?" Rua exclaimed.

I ignored him and his question. I had more important things to think of. "The energy of the stars? This is what are you talking about?!" I burst out.

"Are you ok buddy?"

I recognized Crow's voice but I ignored him too. I was waiting for an answer and I was running out of patience. I saw with the corner of my eyes my friends staring at me utter confusion, like I was mad or something. Maybe they have a point; I was mad and completely pissed off and the truth is, that I was all those things for myself. I was furious with me, only with me. Because I was so close… so close back there. Closer that any of us ever was into the quest of evidences.

"I see that you are familiar with it," the Dark Sage replied softly ignoring my bad temper.

"Familiar with what?" Rua wondered looking both of me and the old man with wide eyes.

"What do you know Jack?" Ruka inquired politely.

"What caused all this," Regulus answered her request instead of me, since I was taking deep breaths trying to gain my composure.

Crow knitted his eyebrow. "I don't understand. If you knew then why you didn't tell us?"

"Because I didn't know that I knew it, alright?" I yelled and glared at him.

"Jack you heard about those Hyper-fibers before?" Aki asked calmly but tense. She was pale as ghost, like she was ready to collapse any minute now.

I nodded slowly. "Yes," I admitted and I clearly can say that it's the first time which I shocked my friends that much. I took a deep breath "I have heard about it, but not under the name Hyper-fibers. It was simply the energy of the stars."

Crow was ready to say something before paused and let his jaw dropped, "I-I think I remember the last time you said something like this."

"Where did you hear it?" Ruka knitted her eyebrows.

"Remember those two weeks we separated and started searching for anything that might help us to find out what happened to Yusei?" I asked and they nodded. "I traveled at the ancient land of Nazca, if you remember."

"You met with Bommer there," Aki remarked.

"Yes, and together we visited some old villages trying to gather as much information as I could. The elderly people there have many legends and one of them was referred to the energy of the stars."

"Yeah, but what exactly _is_ this stars' energy?" Rua asked seriously.

I cleared my throat. "I don't know much. The elder people there are transferring their knowledge from mouth to mouth, so now they have several myths and legends to narrate around the fire. But more or less and as Torunka said, we are talking about energy, which flew into the space. Neat but also powerful and capable enough to create but also to destroy even whole worlds."

"Great lord!" Crow bit his lips.

"Usually a Hyper-fiber is near to every galaxy, providing endless amounts of energy everywhere. In fact, the elders claimed that even the Crimson Dragon itself, ensure its energy from there and this is happening because the Hyper-fiber scatters the energy everywhere with no cost."

"So, it's a good thing. If the Hyper-fiber promotes energy to all beings," Rua concluded.

"This is all I know," I waved my head and shrugged.

"Jack you fool!" Crow suddenly released a word-attack and I winced when he called me quite a few names. I clenched my hand. "You stumbled upon this valuable information and you let it go? How much of a fool are you? And you call me stupid?!" he shot me his best death glare.

I glared at him too biting my tongue. I couldn't fire back, as much as I wanted because he had a point. I was so close. "I didn't know it was vital information to focus on. I was searching anything related to Yusei, so how I'm supposed to make the connection? Especially when the elders were saying-" I paused myself immediately as something hit me; something very important.

"What?" Aki said.

"Wait a minute," I turned to the wizard ignore of them again, "the elders were saying that this energy is good and we all need it, even the Crimson Dragon, so why you said that this is a reason of all this chaos?"

"Maybe something upset the balance," Ruka guessed and the Dark Sage nodded.

"The ancient land of Nazca hides thousands mysteries in its arid lands. It doesn't surprise me that you heard the old legends and I assure you that it's not a myth! What you heard there is all true, but you didn't hear all of it."

"Tell us more then," Crow requested.

"As Jack informed, there is one Hyper-fiber at every galaxy and as long as there is only one, everything works perfectly and fully balanced. All the planets and all the beings have the energy they need to continue to exist and grow without problems."

"What went wrong then?" Aki inquired.

"Another Hyper-fiber approached," the Dark Sage announced.

"Remember what Hanako said? About the Prophesy? _The time will come, when the white rivers in the universe, will be close to one another_," Ruka mused.

"This is how everything started. But we will get to the Prophesy in time my child," the old man cleared his throat before continuing. "Fortunately and unfortunately, the stars are not stable in space. Nothing is steady, since everything swung and moving, always and everywhere. So it's not entirely surprising that the time has come and two Hyper-fibers came close to each other. It's almost impossible for something like this to happened, but not completely impossible."

"But since the Hyper-fibers are good, why this is bad?" Rua asked.

The old man threw us a sad look. "Because when it's only one, everything works at the top of their power, but when there are two a strange phenomenon occurs and everything reverses. The roles changes, the two Hyper-fibers don't go together and then the problems are starting. The _white rivers_ no longer give energy but absorb it, and both of them start to attract each other in crazy ways that increases more and more. And then the energy begins to flow at higher rates."

"So… one Hyper-fiber is good, two of them are bad," I said slowly.

The old man nodded, "Exactly. And I think that you all can understand that the attraction between the Hyper-fibers is not a simple phenomenon and takes place intergalactic and affects everything from people to planets. In the universe there are many different dimensions that coexist alongside."

"Parallel Worlds; as our world and Spirit World," Ruka muttered.

"That's right," the wizard made a slight smile.

"We are capable to understand the whole part with different dimension and parallel worlds. We traveled into many of them," I said and everyone nodded in agreement.

"Sure," the old man waved his head, "so with all this attraction between the two Hyper-fibers, and the fact that they no longer give but take energy, the _white rivers_ are now trying to devour one another in a merciless war, which looks more like a struggle in a survival battle."

"My goodness!" Aki gasped placing one hand over her lips.

"This is far worse than I thought," I whispered.

"Or I feared. Everyone knows the old saying: _your death, my life!_ In survival, nothing matters, everything else is disposable," Crow added.

"But I don't understand, how this is connecting with Yusei," Aki asked confused.

Ruka stared at her with sadness. "Aki, this is connecting with everyone. Don't you remember what Hanako and Fire Sorceress said to us, or what happened to earth before we left?"

Aki's eyes widen. "The battle, the war between the two Hyper-fibers affected everything. The energy for which the Ancient Fairy and Regulus informed us, the spirits absorbed into other worlds and dimensions, but above all the energy from Momentum that's growing and causing problems and incidents... EVERYTHING!"

I saw her face losing the little color it had left.

"All due to the survival war of the two Hyper-fibers, isn't it?"

The old man nodded slowly. "Nothing and no one is safe anymore."

"The whole universe turned upside-down. The energy is out of control, opening the gates between every dimension and penetrating into the worlds causing problems. You already took a small taste, only a small taste, when the energy flew through Momentum to earth," Regulus continued.

I shivered at the memory.

"And you were the lucky ones," Regulus added and I grunted.

"Lucky?" Rua stared him utter confusion.

"Very lucky indeed," the wizard declared, "in other worlds the distraction was worse."

"Aw!" Rua responded with a slight smile and I rolled my eyes. "In that case yes, we are lucky. We still have the sun in the sky, no one absorbed into another world, except us but we came here with our own will."

"Now you know what caused all this chaos between the worlds of the universe and what caused it."

"I thought the answers would make me feel better, but I feel ten times worse now that I know. All this mess, chaos, panic and sorrow," Crow sighed heavily

"We all feel the same and we have a good reason to feel this way," I mused shaking my head to clear up my thoughts. I heard both Aki and Ruka sniffing.

"Does anyone know why the _white rivers_ act like this when they are close to each other?" Crow wondered and I admitted that his question sounded both smart and stupid.

"No one knows, but we can't deny the facts. The _white rivers_ are not giving energy anymore, but absorbing it," the old man replied softly.

"The energy flows in at dangerous levels. The portals between dimensions which once were sealed are now wide open. Nobody is safe, spirit or human. The spirits disappear or are absorbed into other worlds in the best case. One more reason of why I couldn't visit Ruka on Earth. The cross through the gates is now an extremely dangerous process," Regulus summarized waving his hairy head.

"Dangerous process?" I repeated his words, absolutely astonished and hearing my friends murmuring and gasping behind me, I bet they thought the same as I did.

"We passed through many gates, you said we had to but no one informed us about the danger we put ourselves into. Why?" Crow exclaimed angrily and I couldn't blame him for this.

"Umm, Crow?" Ruka called his name I knitted my eyebrows hearing her calm tone. She wasn't looking at him or anyone else in the room, her gaze was somehow lost in space without looking something in particular.

"What?" my orange-haired friend turned to face her, like the rest.

"Ruka!" her brother said in agony, "are you ok?"

She nodded slowly and turned her eyes to the old man. "There is a reason for asking us to come. The same reason of why no one told us about the danger."

Both of the wizard and the lion nodded.

"It doesn't matter if we know it or not. It's not vital for us," the young girl whispered.

"Few can pass through the gates and remain unaffected," the old man explained.

My heart sank in my chest waiting to hear the rest. For some reason, I knew what he was ready to say.

"And you are one of them, all of you are," the Dark Sage announced and even if I was prepared to hear it, his words stole the breath from my lips.

* * *

___Sorry for my late update. _Finally some answers! From now on every chapter will _reveal __something. I worked the next chapters a lot in order not to forget anything. ;) thank you for sticking with me!_

_You can follow me in my FB page here: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** (remove spaces) _I will appreciate it if I saw your likes in my page and my posts :) also you can see my OCs' drawings and profiles for my upcoming story._

_My thanks to: _**Carlos-sama**_, _**IHaveAMessedUpSenseOfHumor**_, _**bookworm83197**_, _**G.A. AnimeFan4**_, _**YugiohObsessed**_, _**BestShot15**_, _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_, _**Karlina101**_ and _**The Man with Imagination**for their awesome reviews!

_…_

_Also _**Carlos-sama**_ won my contest. Even though many of you guess the correct answer but he was the first one. But you know what? I have a hard day, actually a terrible day, so I want to spread some smiles. This is my contest and I announce you all winners. So first thank you for taking place in my contest, second congratulations to all of you! *claps*_

_So, to everyone who guessed right, send me your questions with a PM. ;)_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

_…_

_My special thanks to my lovely beta _**azure blue espeon !**

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	34. Powers

**Chapter 34 – Powers**

_Crow's POV_

"What?" I said in response to hearing this strange statement.

Sure I was confused; actually all of my thoughts were in a tangle after the explanations of the Hyper-fibers and now this. And I have a feeling that it's not over, yet.

"This is the reason of telling you that you and no one else must pass through Momentum," Regulus said.

I looked my friends puzzled but except Ruka, all the others have the same expression in their faces. On the other hand the younger girl seems like she understood something important that the rest of us didn't.

"So that's the reason?" Ruka waved her head staring the big lion.

Regulus nodded.

"Excuse me!" her twin gushed lifting one finger in the air, "can anyone explain what you are talking about?"

"I remember when Ruka announced that only we have to pass through the gate. Back there we didn't pay much of attention, but clearly there is a good reason," Jack mused.

"Can we found out?" I asked and shivered at the thought alone. Not only a good reason but an important one too.

"But still. Why it's so dangerous?" Aki cut me off.

Regulus and Torunka exchanged a meaningful look along with an uncomfortable silence, and Ruka followed their lead, avoiding our confusing gazes. Now I'm absolutely positive that I'm not going to like the rest.

Dark Sage cleared his throat, and all turned our attention to him, hanging from his lips. "I think it's better if I explain it fully. You see, there are many gates among the worlds of the universe. Usually those portals are closed, but it's common for them to open from their own or by an outside force."

"What do you mean when you say _by __an outside_ _force_?" I knitted my eyebrows.

"Be exerting a large amount of energy. If something like that would happen, then the gate will surely open and I think that all of you had a taste of it. For example, the gate that leads to your world is usually shielded, but you know what can happen if the energy increases, by accident or with intention," the wizard replied softly.

My heart kicked in my chest. I nodded by instinct; of course I knew. "The gate opens."

"You are right Crow, and anyone can pass with no problems," the wizard affirmed.

"So why this is dangerous then?" Rua sighed.

"Because now the energy is aggressive," Regulus answered.

"Aggressive because of the two Hyper-fibers. I already told you that they are fighting in a violent war for survival. You are not going to like what I'm about to tell you right now, but it's the truth, an awful truth," Torunka closed his eyes the same time that everyone held their breath, "in order to survive," the wizard opened his eyes slowly, "the Hyper-fibers wants to take back what they gave away."

"Energy," Ruka muttered, still looking away avoiding us.

For a split of second I forgot Torunka's words and stared the youngest girl in our team. She turned away, sniffing her nose and waving her head, like she already knew what the wizard was trying to explain. _But how?_ Ruka must be really smart. For me, it's one of those few times in my life where I'm truly puzzled.

Dark Sage nodded. "Yes, energy. Both Hyper-fibers are trying to become stronger and bigger taking the energy back. They require large amounts of energy, so they need to look at every dimension and increase the energy so the excess overflows into the other worlds and then like a magnet it sucks it all back."

"Which is…" Jack was pale as ghost and I felt a pinch in my heart. Somehow I knew what the wizard was about to say.

"The energy attracts energy. First to collect and then to absorb it," he said and I gasped.

"Martha said that Yusei said that. He mentioned it actually," Rua whispered.

"It doesn't surprise me that Yusei figured it out. But what do you mean when you say, absorb it?" Aki asked.

"It means, what it means; every living creature, from animals, humans, duel monster's spirits… everything is being marked as a target, a possible source of energy. So passing from one world to another you put yourself at the spot," the wizard replied.

"You mean that the Hyper-fibers absorbed Yusei's energy completely?" I asked and regretted it the same time hearing Aki gasping and trembled ready to faint.

"No!" she shot her eyes and shook her head, holding it with her hands, "No way, it can't be! He is still alive, he is not… he is alive…"

I bit my tongue realizing her fears. I turned to Dark Sage feeling my heart beating like crazy, refusing to abandon hope.

"But we pass through many gates, without facing any problem," I protested. That was the best disagreement I could come with. It's not much but it's a dissent question.

"It's ok," Ruka tried to comforted us and Aki, placing a hand on her shoulder, "he is ok," she managed a slight smile and I felt more confuse now.

"Everyone can pass through the gates but it's a deadly risk to take it without a reason," the wizard took a deep breath before continued, "Although some are safer than the others. You can protect your energy from being absorbed and drive away the attraction of the Hyper-fibers."

"And something like this can happen?" Jack asked impatiently.

"If you are in the possession of a special power like an inner gift, then you are able to subconsciously, shield yourself. And you, all of you are in a possession of a special gift," the wizard announce and trailed his gaze to all of us.

And for some seconds, there was a deadly silence within the room. I couldn't even breathe, but I forced myself to recover quickly. I had no reason not to believe him, but something is missing here. Not all of us have a gift. I opened my mouth to disagree but I lost my chance.

"Alright! This isn't totally a new thing, some of us have a special ability like Ruka and Aki," Jack said.

My gaze fell on the girls immediately. My blond friend had a point, this wasn't something new.

The wizard nodded. "Of course, your friends are really gifted."

"Aki's _psychic powers_ are enough to protect her from the stream of energy," Regulus added. Now everyone was looking the magenta-haired duelist.

Aki shifted her weight from one leg to another. "We thought so. When we were walking at the desert…" she waved her head in a way which was difficult to understand if she was happy or sad about it. "So, thanks to my psychic powers, I'm still here with all of my energy?"

"Yes. The power you possess is acting like a shield. If the Hyper-fibers try to attack you, they will have to face you inner wall," the wizard replied.

"The same applies to Ruka," Regulus said turned his big hairy head to the youngest girl.

"My _connection with the Spirit World_ and all the duel monsters' spirits are my strength," she murmured. "You are my strength actually," she added stretching her hand touching Regulus golden mane.

"And you are our connection, with the Human World my child," the wizard informed and the young girl made a warm smile, with a hint of sadness.

"And what about the rest of us?" Rua frowned pointed his chest.

I held back a chuckle. Rua looked really anxious to find out about his gift. No one had any doubt about the girls; Regulus and Torunka's words were just the confirmation. As for Jack I'm not really wondering; I have an idea, but the real surprise will be when I become the main theme of the conversation.

"I'm pretty sure you won't be surprised about Jack's gift, am I right?" Dark Sage turned his eyes on the blond duelist, just everyone else.

My old teammate was standing with his arms crossed in his chest. He grunted with an indifferent expression on his face. At least this is what he wanted to show outwardly, but I know him really well dare I say it. He was listening carefully, paying great attention.

"No, no surprise at all. After all, my gift is burning," he stated flatly.

I waved my head. Typical Jack. "Be careful, pretty boy. You may put fire to yourself too."

The blond man shot me a death glare and prepare to fire back, but lost his chance as the wizard interrupted him.

"Yes, few men in the history manage to gain the strength to master this power, and you are one of them Jack," he replied softly.

I pouted. He shouldn't say this to him, it's too much for his ego and my fears were confirmed when Jack flashed a wide, bossy smile.

"No one wants to mess with me and my _Burning Soul_," he announced officially.

I face-palmed.

"Sure, we saw that coming," Aki giggled and for a moment I wonder if she meant his gift or his arrogant reaction.

"And what about me?" Rua inquired impatiently.

"Here comes the interesting part," Ruka smiled at her precious brother.

Rua turned to the wizard. "I sure have a gift too, right? I mean, I never had one, Ruka…" he peeked at her for a spilt of second, "… was always the gifted one, since we were three years old, but since the day we passed through Momentum's gate everything changed. I can sense things too like she does, well not as strong as her, but still…"

The old man lifted his eyebrows in sympathy. "Rua, you have always had this gift inside you."

"I did?" the young boy immediately reacted with wonder, and he wasn't the only one.

Jack and I exchanged a startled look; Aki knitted her eyebrows and Ruka got a wide-eyed.

"How is this possible? I mean it doesn't make sense; Rua cannot have a gift forever. I'm sure about it, I remember years ago at the Arcadia Movement, Divine did his best to find out if he had a metaphysical power, but he diagnosed none, and I know pretty well how many test he did to him," the magenta-haired duelist protested.

Both Rua and Ruka shivered at the thought, but the younger girl hurried to affirm Aki's words.

"She is right. I was there too, when that evil man hurt my brother, he almost killed him. He thought that because he is my brother he would be gifted too."

"Then he was a smart man; evil, but smart. Because your brother my child _is _gifted. He always was," the wizard said.

Rua lifted one finger. "Excuse me? But how is this possible? Can you explain then why Divine didn't find it?"

"Because he didn't search at the right place or he didn't use the correct way to drag it out," Dark Sage explained and smiled.

"Can you be more specific?" the young boy requested.

"Your gift arises from your sister. Something like extending her capabilities," the wizard briefed.

"What does that mean?" I asked puzzled and Rua shrugged, with the same wonder in his face.

Regulus cleared his throat. "His sister is his strength, she is the gifted one, as Rua very well know and informed earlier. But they are twins and twins always sharing special bonds. More than the usual one between brothers and sisters."

I think everyone caught what he was trying to say.

"Ruka is the source of my power?" Rua concluded.

"You also have a connection with the Spirit World and you showed it many times in your life. Like when she first fell into a coma when she was three years old, you were the only one Ruka could hear back there," Regulus continued.

"That makes sense," Rua mused.

"And after at the Fortune cup, your sister's mind was spirited away and you fell unconscious, until she managed to come back finishing her duel. Then you woke up too."

"I remember," the boy muttered.

"If you want more I can tell you," Torunka volunteered.

"You don't have to because I believe you, but I'm curious to hear," Rua grinned.

"You helped her with her battle against the Dark Signer and with your battle with Aporia. When your sister needed you, you were willing to sacrifice yourself to save her. And because your great effort at your last battle you awakened your powers without realizing it so Crimson Dragon marked you as a Signer."

"She is my sister and I will protect her, but wow…! I never thought about that," his words left his mouth with awe.

"That's your purpose; you share more than just the same blood."

"You were always my hero Rua," his sister smiled widely.

"That's really interesting, but why didn't Divine find out about it?" Aki asked again.

"As I said before, Rua awakens his gift to protect his sister, since she is the main owner of this gift. When she needs help she can transfer some power to someone else, someone really close to her in this case her twin brother," the wizard replied.

I heard Jack gritting his teeth and I gasped. Even Aki reacted to this statement covering her mouth with one hand.

"So if Divine was focusing to both children and treated them like they were one, he would have easily became aware of Rua's hidden powers," the wizard ended up, leaving us speechless.

"I'm glad Divine tortured only me and not Ruka trying to find my powers," Rua growled.

"Alright, that make sense about Rua, but why did his gift become bigger and stronger after we traveled to the first alternative dimension?" Jack asked.

"This is an honest question?" I nodded my head agreeing with him.

"Because he is not on earth anymore. Back to your home other rules are dominating; they hold anything strange and unnatural under control. A gift must be very strong to overcome the natural laws of Earth, like Ruka's and Aki's." Torunka explained immediately.

"I see. That's really interesting," my childhood friend mused.

"Any other questions?" the wizard asked and I bit my lips.

My turned is coming, but I still doubted if I had any ability like the others. Even Ruka's brother has one, but still…

"One more question," Rua lifted his hand.

"What?"

"Why only someone with a gift can pass through the gates without a problem? I mean what's the difference, having or not having a gift, to the Hyper-fibers we are all targets filled with energy. So since we all full of what they want then why am I safe and someone else with no strange ability is not?"

The wizard managed a slight smile. "Your question has many answers Rua. First I will answer to your main one. You are right wondering that since you are holding more power, why you are not in the spot. In theory you and your friends are at the top of the more-energy-within list. That would put you in a dangerous path, if we stay in theory, of course."

"But theory from practice is like the day and the night of two different planets," Ruka muttered.

"Because in practice this is immediately translating that since you are holding more energy, then the fibbers too must spent more energy to fight with your defense systems. And the Hyper-fibers won't bother to consume an amount of energy, which is quite high almost as much as the energy which will gain from you," the wizard explained.

"So the Hyper-fibers won't get even bother to attack to us, right?" Aki concluded and the Dark Sage nodded.

"Now you know why you and only you can travel among the worlds and no one else must follow," Regulus ended up.

I never saw that coming, that's for sure. Of course I'm still wondering about my gift, but I think I can live without knowing it. After all I know I have none.

"Sure it's clearer now," Jack nodded.

"And because of this, we are the only ones who can save Yusei, aren't we?" Aki asked.

"And the universe from the Hyper-fibers' war?" Ruka added.

"Not only," the wizard replied softly.

"Wait! There are more?" I exclaimed.

Torunka and Regulus look each other with meaning again before the wizard opened his mouth. "Only you my friends are holding the keys and the powers to which you mastered the Elemental Dragons."

There was a dead silence in the room, as no one was dared to breathe.

"The Elements… _what_?" Ruka recovered first.

* * *

_More answers guys and I bet I'm not the only one who believe Rua is gifted too. I gave you my head-canon thoughts, but what you think? Aw and don't worry Crow fans… we will see what he has in time ;)_

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove spaces)_

_My thanks to: _**Carlos-sama**_, _**LifeIsSacred**_, _**The Man with Imagination**_, _**Scarletleaf66**_, _**G.A. AnimeFan4**_, _**MarauderRebelFan**_ and _**PrincessWindNight **_for_ _their reviews!_

_My special thanks to my lovely beta_ **_azure blue espeon !_**

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	35. Five Elements

**Chapter 35 – Five Elements**

_Ruka's POV_

"Dragons, my child," Toruka reiterated.

This is new; totally new! I mean, it was quite easy to figure about our inner powers, since I had some more clues, especially from Regulus, but the Elements Dragons…?

I can easy understand why only we can move from one world to another; our gifts act like shields and those shields are enough to protect us, but a common man, someone without a special ability is an easy target. Easily can trapped or lost or even sacrifice at this endless war between the two Hyper-fibers.

I took a deep breath. Because of our inner shields we are safe and I know Yusei is safe too… for now. But now a new clue came forth and apparently our powers are more complicated than I first thought.

"Oh! Man! My head is killing me, after all those information at once," my brother exclaimed.

I smiled seeing him holding his head with both hands, but I couldn't help it too. Rua was absolutely right, that was a lot of information for our poor minds. Almost all of my friends have the same reaction like my twin had.

"What do you mean by _Elements_?" Aki asked.

"And what do you mean by _Dragons_?" Jack demanded.

"Those are two different questions and two different subjects which require a deeper explanation, if you want to understand the whole thing," Torunka replied softly.

Crow grimaced confused. "Is it only me, or did you guys don't understand a word too?"

"Probably it's you Crow," Jack scoffed, and the orange-haired duelist glared at him getting ready to reply, but Regulus cleared his throat causing them to stop.

"Let's start from the beginning," the lion suggested, "how many of you have heard about the five elements before?"

"I have!" Crow, Aki and I exclaimed at the same time.

"You do?" Rua stared us surprised. I nodded.

"How? When?" Jack asked, knitting his eyebrows.

"Regulus informed us, when Ruka called him at the desert," Aki explained pointing both, the lion and me. I nodded again.

"Aw!" Rua shut his mouth and opened his eyes and ears ready to hear everything.

Crow scratched the back of his head. "But there is a small problem here. Actually not a problem, more of an ignorance since I always knew there were four Elements, not five."

"I know. You are not the only one with the same ignorance. But don't worry soon you will know the truth," Regulus commented.

"Ok," Crow shrugged.

"There is a reason of why the fifth Element is out of knowledge," Regulus added and turned his gaze at the old man.

Now all the gazes in the room fell upon the wizard, seeking for more answers.

Torunka cleared his throat, taking a big breath. "There are five Elements, created for the ancients' times. All the worlds and all the universes out there are based to those Elements. Four of them can be seen, touched or felt by your five senses and this is the reason of why, accidently people believe that there is no other Element. Can you guess which the Elements are?"

"Fire," Jack muttered and the wizard nodded, trailing his gaze on the psychic girl.

"Earth," Aki said and the old man smiled lightly, turning his eyes on me.

"Water," I replied and Torunka's face lit up.

Old Sage looked my brother. "And…?"

"Umm, Wind…?" Rua said slowly a bit unsure, but after Torunka's bright smile, my brother grinned widely.

"All correct! Fire, Earth, Water and Wind are the most common Elements, which everyone is familiar with. But there is one more, maybe the most important one, the fifth and last Element; Ether!" the wizard announced.

"Ether? I never heard of it again," Jack mused.

Aki nodded. "You are not the only one. Although I remember hearing it before, I think from Divine, when I was still an Arcadia Movement's member."

"That bloody brat! Why it doesn't surprise me?" Jack sneered.

"But why is so important?" Crow asked.

"Because Ether is everywhere and filling everything; it's the one which brings together the other four Elements, acting like a bond to maintain the balance between them," Dark Sage explained.

"So… this is the balance of the Elements, which Regulus-" my eyes fell on the lion before I turned to the wizard again, "-informed us days ago?"

"Yes," the armed lion nodded slowly, with a hint of… sadness in his eyes.

I knitted my eyebrows utter confusion, but Torunka spoke again. "There are many balances in the world and one of them is referring to the five Elements, to which all the creation based its existents so the universe can work perfectly. But as every balance, so this one is fragile too."

"Why things always are so complicated and ready to fall apart?" my brother burst, holding his head again. I rolled my eyes.

"I can't agree more with you," Crow supported him.

Jack snorted and Aki huffed heavily.

"The energy is fragile, the Balances are fragile too, is there anything out there which is not fragile?" Rua took a deep breath daring to hope, but I waved my head in a negative way.

"I'm afraid the answer is no," Dark Sage replied.

My brother pouted, crossing his arms in his chest.

"I understand your anger and disappointment, but I speak the truth."

Regulus comforted him. "Don't worry Rua, this balance is really important for all of us and that's the reason of why five dragons were selected years and years ago, to become the guardians, to each one of them was given one Element to protect, maintaining the balance at any cost."

"Any cost?" Aki asked with fear in her voice.

"Any cost! Even if this means its own life's. The Balance must be kept," Torunka affirmed.

"So… those guardians, I mean those five dragons are…" my voice faded meaningfully.

Both Regulus and Torunka nodded.

"Yes, those dragons, named the Elements Dragons, had been chosen from the Crimson Dragon itself," Dark Sage stated.

Crow reacted immediately with surprise. "Excuse me? When did the Crimson Dragon come into the picture?"

"Yeah, what does the Elemental Dragons have in common with Crimson Dragon?" Jack added.

"Actually, who are the Elemental Dragons?" Aki raised her voice.

Torunka exchanged a glance with Rugulus before turning to face as. Wonder was written all over his face. He smiled taking a deep breath. "I thought it was clear until now, but the Elements Dragons gained many names in the centuries. In our days they were known as the Crimson Dragon's warriors or as you are more familiar with, the Signer Dragons, your Dragons," he waved his hand showing us.

Our reactions were one by one: Rua paused and let his jaw drop, Aki covered her mouth with her hand, Jack's eyes widened in shocked, Crow lost his voice and stood there with his mouth open and I stared at them absolutely astonished. We were left in a dead silence as his words stared to set in. After…

"What?" six voices echoed in the room as we all exclaimed together.

"What are you talking about?"

"Our Dragons?"

"Signers? Elements? What's going on here?"

"Apparently our ace monsters hide a … complicated past I must say," I muttered.

Torunka smiled with understanding. "Complicate is a really soft way to put it my child. But this is the truth. Your Dragons selected since ancients time, each one holds and keeps one Element. Because of their guardian's roles in history, the Crimson Dragon choose them to become his warriors and after that, his Signer Dragons."

"Hey, hey, hey, time out! Give us a rest Torunka, all that information at once, it's gonna burn out all my brain cells," Rua exclaimed.

"Unfortunately I can't. You must know the truth, you have to know everything, and the time is... flying as you humans put it."

I gasped, covering my mouth by instinct. After what we lived through the last days and what we heard from Torunka and Regulus today, I almost forgot Yusei and why we were running restless. With everything going on, I completely forgot about the time limit.

"Go ahead Torunka. Tell us more, everything we need to know," Aki requested politely.

I bet Aki is ready to do anything, even jump from a high building, if with this way she will help to save Yusei. We are all tired, confused, even hungry, thirsty and sleepless. The last days of traveling among the worlds, were more than exhausted. But we have no other way, with time hanging over our heads, we have to accept all the information that Torunka and Regulus are giving us; as crazy as they sound.

I took a deep breath. "Ok, our Dragons have been chosen by Crimson Dragon itself, because they are the Elemental Dragons, right?"

"Right," Dark Sage affirmed.

"Five Elements, five dragons. It makes sense of why the Crimson Dragon selected them," Jack muttered.

"First I have to inform you, that not many years ago the five dragons became six. For unknown reasons Crimson Dragon chose one more as the guardian of the Wind," Regulus said.

"It's now really unknown, more so that we are not completely sure, but it's the only logical explanation we can think of," Torunka corrected.

"And what is that?"Jack asked.

"First I will have to tell you which Element each dragon holds."

"Which Element does my dragon holds?" Jack suddenly asked.

Strange question, but also a clever one. I didn't think to ask something like that, but right now I found myself wondering about my ace monster, even though I have a hint.

The wizard shot him a tense glance. "Your dragon Jack; Red Demon is the guardian of the Fire Element."

Jack's eyebrows rose, not with wonder but with pride. Of course this isn't a surprise, especially thinking of Jack's specialty: _Burning Soul_.

Torunka turned to Aki. "Yours my dear. Black Rose is the guardian of the Earth Element. Remember what kind of deck you carry?"

"Black garden, plants. Plants are strongly connected with the earth, right?" Aki muttered.

Torunka smiled with warmth and nodded turning on me. "Ancient Fairy is the guardian of-"

"The Water Element!" I said before him with all emotion I could muster.

"And your brother's…"

"Mine?" Rua's widen in shock.

"Life Stream is the guardian of the Wind Element," Torunka ended up and leaving my brother speechless.

"Wow!" he said and pulled out his deck, searching for his ace monster without doubt.

I peeked on Crow, feeling somehow confused toward him. Now that I'm thinking of it neither Torunka nor Regulus mentioned anything about his inner ability and now his dragon. But he is here, he is with us. This isn't making any sense.

"So the last Element, the Ether Element, belongs to Stardust," Jack concluded.

"It doesn't surprise me, considering that Yusei's dragon holds the most important Element of all," Crow mused.

"The less well known Element, but also the most important one," Torunka added.

"This reminds me of Yusei," I noticed, remembering how important our friend is.

He is loyal, caring, forgiving, ready to do anything, even give his own life to protect what he loves. He is the most important of our team, I dare say. Our last hope and now he is in danger.

"All the Elements are important, but the Ether is the one which brings everything closer. Everything is connecting with the fifth and last element but with each other as well," Regulus explained.

"Ether is a bond to the world web; it's holding the other Elements together…" Aki's voice cracked and she paused sniffing her nose.

"…Just like Yusei it's our bond, holding us together" I finished her thought, swallowing the knot in my throat.

Dark Sage cleared his throat. "And now, things become a little more complicated, when one more Element Dragon appeared."

Rua huffed. "What you mean, a little more? To me, the whole thing is complicated enough."

"Soon it will clear up for all of you, this is just the first time you're hearing this and you need some time to accept it," Regulus assured us.

"Yeah, well as I said one more dragon appeared as a keeper of the Wind Element," the wizard locked his gaze on the orange-haired duelist, "this is your dragon, Black Feather."

Crow blinked a couple of times making a doubtful expression. "Huh? Why?"

"Yeah, why? What happen to my dragon?" my brother rushed to say.

"Life Stream was the first selected dragon as the guardian of the Wind. For centuries and centuries he kept his role, helping the other dragons to maintain the balance. But the Crimson Dragon chose Black Feather as one of his warriors and marked him as one of the Signers Dragons, allowing to him to hold the Wind Element along with Life Stream."

"But why? Was my dragon not enough?" Rua insisted.

"We are not sure yet, although we have a logical explanation for it," Regulus said.

"Which is?" Jack lifted one eyebrow.

"Life Stream had no master yet. Crow became a Signer after your match with Rex Godwin, but he had no Signer Dragon in his possession and Rua wasn't a Signer yet. So Crimson Dragon decided to share the responsibility of the Wind among two dragons. Life Stream remained the main guardian of the Wind, but he temporarily stepped aside leaving Black Feather in his place. After, when Rua became a Signer and released Life Stream from Power Tool, Crimson Dragon kept both of the dragons as his warriors," Torunka explained.

"It makes sense," Jack said after some minutes as we were all trying to understand.

"May I ask something else?" Rua lifted one finger.

"Yes?"

Rua held his ace card and showed it to him. "My card is marked with the Earth attribute, but you said Life Stream is the dragon of the Wind Element, why?"

"Now that you mention it," Aki pulled out her deck and pulled out her ace monster. "Black Rose is a fire attribute monster."

"You wish Aki. Fire belongs to me, but Red Demon dragon is a dark monster and I know for sure that Stardust is a wind monster," Jack said icily.

"Black Feather is dark," Crow knitted his eyebrows, holding his monster.

"Mine is a light one," I stared at Ancient Fairy's card.

"Are we missing something here?" Rua asked in utter confusion.

Torunka chuckled waving his head casually. "No, as I already said I'm familiar with this game you humans created, but real life is not a game."

"I still don't understand. Why my Life Stream holds the Wind Element but he has the Earth attribute?" my brother scratched his head.

"You said it yourself Rua. Elements and attributes are two different things; one is real life and the other a game rule," Regulus muttered, indifferently.

"Aw! Ok, I see," Rua murmured and shut his mouth.

"Now you know the history behind your dragons. First they were the Elements Dragons, responsible for the Balance of the five Elements. Each one is a guardian of one Element and because of this Crimson Dragon picked them for his warriors and marked them after as Signers Dragons," Torunka finally said.

"And those are our dragons," I added.

"And if I'm not mistaken. We mastered those dragons because of our abilities that lay within us; our special gifts," Jack said.

"Correct," Regulus replied.

"And since you are strong and capable enough to mastered them as your friends, allies, companions, or servants; the Elemental, Signer and Warrior Dragons, that makes you warriors as well," Torunka raise his voice a bit.

"And that gives you one more reason of why you are the only ones who can save the universe, our faith is in your hands. You are the masters of Crimson Dragon warriors, and you all have special powers," Regulus emphasized.

"Why do I have this bad feeling that the surprises won't stop, but will continue on forever?" Rua waved his head and I rolled my eyes.

"This reminds me what Fire Sorcerer said, back there at the other dimension. But we are no warriors, I mean ok, we are duelist, but-" Crow paused biting his lips.

"Aw yes… the Prophesy," Dark Sage smiled.

"You know it?" I asked before I couldn't stop myself.

"Of course, and I'm glad you heard it before because that is our next conversation subject," Torunka replied softly.

"_Maybe I can help you sensei_!" a strange voice echoed suddenly in the main room.

I turned my head confused, trying to find who spoke. I felt a pinch in my heart, this voice… somehow it sounded familiar. My friends exchanged nervous glances, but Regulus and Torunka remained calm.

"There!" Jack pointed with his hand the small pool in the center.

The water inside was creating a whirlpool and a faded fog were emerged from the center.

"_Since you are referred to my Prophesy, I think it should be wise if I explain it_," the voice came out of the water.

"What is happening?" Aki asked looking the wizard with a hint of fear.

"My dear, it's our pleasure," Torunka replied and smiled encouraging to the psychic duelist.

We were all staring the surface of the water as a human shape started to appear. I heard several gasps when finally we were able to see who was talking.

* * *

_More answers! It make sense right? The Elements-Signers thing… _

_…_

_And the 5th Element is Eather! The winner from the contest on chapter 24 is G.A. AnimeFan4! Congratulations! You can send me your question with a PM. ;)_

**_Note_**_: it will be only one question! Only one specific question and I will give a straight answer. Ok?_

…

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove spaces)_

_My thanks to: _**Scarletleaf66**_, _**Carlos-sama**_, _**G.A. AnimeFan4**_, _**ObsessedwReading**,** PrincessWindNight ****CrimsonSnowScarletFate**_, _**MarauderRebelFan**, **Karlina101**,_ and _**Aysu**_, for_ _their reviews!_

_My special thanks to my beta_ **_azure blue espeon_**_!_

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_

_P.S. one more thing... i started a new story for my Jewels of love collection/challenge under the title "**Jewels of Love: Pearl and Titanium – Heavenly hell**" You can read and review if you like... ^_^_


	36. Answers from the source

**OMG! I'm so sorry guys! I posted the wrong chapter! accidentally I posted chapter 37 and not 36! I messed it up! :( here is the right one! and sorry again!**

* * *

**Chapter 36 – Answers from the source**

_Rua's POV_

My breath stopped in my throat seeing her. _She is gorgeous!_ And now I realized why she is such a popular duel monster. Of course she is strong too but still, I couldn't help but stare at her in awe! I can't believe I'm seeing her -she is real not a hologram. I prayed silently to see her live and in person too.

"Sensei, it's been years since the last time I saw you," she smiled.

Dark Sage greeted her back, "My dear Dark Magician Girl, many years indeed but it's always a pleasure to see you."

"Same here master," she giggled and then her face grew serious when she noticed the rest of us.

We were all standing around the gate with wonder and confusion written all over our faces.

"Dark Magician Girl?" Crow murmured as it was hard to believe with his own eyes. I can't blame him.

Her eyes fell upon my sister. "Aw Ruka! I'm so glad you managed to escape from your last dimension, I was so worried that I wouldn't be able to open the gate in time."

"What?" I reacted without thinking and the next minute I slammed a hand over my mouth.

"It was you!" Ruka exclaimed and her face lit up, as if she made an important realization. "Your voice was echoing in my head, giving me directions."

I gasped, absolutely astonished. Alright I didn't see that coming. _But then again_ _who did?_

"Yes, it was me. It was really hard to get in touch with you, so at the end I used your gift, Ruka, your special connection with the spirits and the Spirit World, and I'm glad I finally did it."

My sister shook her head. "And I thought I was starting to lose it. You could have at least informed me of who you are, or answered some of my questions."

"Forgive me Ruka," Dark Magician Girl apologized.

I took a peek towards my twin; I forgive Dark Magician Girl already for all the mess she created for my sister.

"I didn't want to make you so confused, but you must understand, it was really hard to come in contact with you, and I had to give you the right directions and make sure I wouldn't forget any of them. Plus I had to make sure you understood the gravity of the situation. I tried to open the gate in time, but I was afraid that I would be too late with the army there."

"You mean you sent us into a trap?" Jack yelled angrily. I glared at him.

"I sent you to the only gate which could transfer you into the Spirit World," Dark Magician Girl replied, polite but also strict and Jack looked like he ran out of complains. She cleared her throat. "Anyway, I was really worried about you, but now that all of you are safe and my pathetic plan worked-"

"It wasn't pathetic!" I protested cutting her off and blushed like mad when she flashed me huge smile which made my heart skip a beat.

"You are so sweet Rua, but back there it was pathetic. I sent you into a trap, true Jack was very well informed, but it was the only plan I could think of. Plus I was feared that maybe Ruka wouldn't take my directions seriously, and with the time hanging over our heads…" her voice faded and shivered lightly.

"Well, I'll admit that for a moment I thought I was just losing my mind, and that I should have just pushed you away," my sister confessed.

"I'm glad you didn't."

"We were out there, alone and despaired, and you were offering me a solution. So I grabbed it, hoping I was doing the right thing," Ruka added.

"And I can't tell you, how happy I am that you trusted me. Because of your trust and my help, we're all here. But time is still running and it's time for you to know everything about my Prophecy," Dark Magician Girl continued.

"You made the Prophecy?" Aki asked for the first time after her appearance at the pool.

Dark Magician Girl sighed, "I did. Years and years ago, I don't even remember when exactly, but I know everything and I will gladly explain it to you."

"Wait!" Crow gushed. "You are the mistress? I mean Fire Sorcerer said-"

"Oh! You met Fire Sorcerer? Is she ok? Where is she?" Dark Magician Girl cut him off as worry flashed in her beautiful eyes.

Alright, I think we can take her reaction as 'yes', she is the mistress.

"We met her at the Winged Beast World," Jack replied.

Dark Magician Girl huffed happily, "I was so worried about her. She was one of the many spirits that disappeared within the last two months and I hadn't the slightest idea if she was ok, or if she was absorbed by the _white rivers_. I just hope when all this chaos marches to its end, she will be able to come back."

"Let's hope that all this chaos _will _march to its end," Torunka commented.

"Oh sensei, don't be so negative. Time is against us, but our heroes are here and there is still time for them," Dark Magician Girl advised.

My chest filled with pride. _She thinks I'm a hero too?! _Man I can't believe it. My sister elbowed me, bringing me back to reality -to a scary reality.

"How many times do we have to tell you guys? We want to help both of you and Yusei, but we are no warriors," Crow stated with a hint of sadness.

"Oh yes! You have to save Yusei first to be able to save the universe," Dark Magician Girl informed, apparently ignoring Crow's words.

He opened his mouth again but Aki rushed to speak, "We can save him? Can you tell us how? We'll do anything," she asked with great expectations.

Dark Magician Girl nodded and for the first time, and after many days we all sighed full of hope. This is the greatest news we've ever heard since team Ragnarok opened Momentum's gate. Until today we all hoped to find a way to save Yusei, but our will and wishes weren't good enough. We needed solutions and now we can have what we want.

"I will tell you everything but first, you have to visit me in my kingdom," she announced.

My heart bounced in my chest. So my prayers had been heard; I'm going to see her in person! I was thrilled.

"Sensei?" she called.

Dark Sage nodded. "Over here my friends, hold your hands tightly and Ruka, you will hold mine," he gave us the directions and we all did what he said. "Stay here Regulus. Spirit World may need you."

The lion gave a curt nod and turned to face my sister. "Be careful Ruka, the universe needs you and your friends. The fate of us all is in your hands my friends."

"We will do our best," Ruka promised.

"What are you going to do Torunka?" Aki asked grabbing Crow's and Jack's hand tightly. Crow caught my hand and I held my sister's.

"We will open a temporary gate between this world and my world," Dark Magician Girl explained in hurry, answering instead of the wizard.

Jack knitted his eyebrows, "You can do that? I thought the gates were in specific areas."

"Sometimes and under some special circumstances it can be happen," Dark Sage replied and turned and the Dark Magician Girl. "Are you ready my dear?"

"As always master," she winked.

Both of the spellcaster monsters waved their wands in a perfect synchronization, hitting the water in the pool at the same spot.

A bright light appeared in the room, so bright that I couldn't see anything, not even my nose. Waves of heat washed over me a couple of times and before I managed to take a breath. When I opened my eyes I found myself in a different room, holding both Crow and Ruka's hands. I blinked my eyes several times to chase away the black spots and looked all around the room, I gasped with awe.

"Where are we?" Jack demanded.

"I'm the empress of this castle and mistress of this realm."

I think I lost my mind seeing her alive and in front of me.

Dark Magician Girl smiled with warmth, extending her arms like she was going to embrace us all, saying, "Welcome to my kingdom, warriors of the Prophecy."

"What exactly is your kingdom _empress_?" Jack asked marking the last word a bit more.

Dark Magician Girl kept the smile in her face. "My kingdom is the Dominion of the Beast, also known as the Kingdom of the Legendary Dragons. Although there are no dragons anymore -they were released from their prison years ago by the King of Games."

"Yuugi Muuto?! So this is the home of Timaeus, Kritias and Hermos?" I exclaimed.

"That's right. But they are not here, they are on a mission."

I sighed heavily, I wish I could see them too, but since I was able to lay my eyes on Dark Magician Girl, I feel that I can die happily. We needed a moment to take a look around. This castle looks magnificent; right now we were in the middle of a white room, with red royal carpet, and at the end I saw a crimson-gold throne -no doubt it was her throne. The walls were full of paintings and even the ceiling has drawings. Light were coming from the big windows and I saw with the corner of my eyes some duel monster's spirits standing at the four corners and near the throne. I recognized Dark Witch, Magician of Faith, Dunames Dark Witch and more.

"This place is great," I commented and she smiled more.

"Sensei, it's time to explain to our guest their fate," her voice grew serious and Dark Sage nodded.

"And how to save Yusei," Aki added and I made a slight smile.

Dark Magician Girl cleared her throat. "That too, of course. Well, as my sensei informed you already, we are in the middle of a war -a war we can't control or even grasp any hope of winning, unless we all come forth and fight."

"Yes, we know about it. The Hyper-fibers are not opponents which can be beaten down easily," Crow muttered bitterly.

"You put it really nice, because unfortunately the _white rivers _can't be beaten at all. The time came and instead of sharing energy, they now adsorb it; everyone and everything, from whole worlds to a single soul are in danger. One of the universe's balances has been deeply interrupted and in a deadly way. Fortunately, we weren't unprepared for it so the war didn't catch us off guard. Even though this doesn't mean we're all free to rest ourselves."

"You mean the Prophecy, right?" Ruka asked.

"Right, I made this Prophecy and I'm in the position to speak every single word in it. So please follow me," she requested and left towards the end of the room.

Queens Knight bowed with respect and opened the door for us. The mistress led us down a long corridor to another room that was less vast and bright. Once inside, I felt a cold chill creep up my spine like a warning. In the middle was a big stand with a large open and ancient looking book.

"This is the Prophecy room," she informed taking place in front of the stand, examining the book. She touched the old paper gently taking a deep breath. "This room is forbidden to anyone but me, so you are really lucky for being able to stand in here."

Maybe I was, but I couldn't realize it. This room was scaring me for some reason and when Ruka gripped my hand with hers, I came to the conclusion that I wasn't the only one.

Dark Magician Girl turned one page. "It's time for you to know. I made this Prophecy years ago, it's so strange, after so many centuries, I'm actually living the facts," her voice held a hint of sadness.

"Come my dear," Dark Sage prompted her and she cleared her throat, ready to start reading.

"Alright, here is the whole text as I wrote it:

At every start a hope is born.

_The time will come, when the white rivers will come together_.

And chaos and darkness will reign the days.

All the worlds and all the beings, will suffer this terrible fate.

War will begin, as that which gives will now take back, struggling for survival.

The war will spread across the universe, reaching the furthest corners of the galaxy.

Nothing will be stable or safe; everything we knew will now change form.

At far, a pale hope still shines.

_Five humans will travel amongst the worlds, struggling without a choice._

_Two women and three men, but neither alone._

Each will count as one, but they are two.

The warriors will stand up and save that of which they hold dearest in their hearts.

_They fight because only they have powers like no others_.

Though throughout all hope's flame still flickers.

Their gifts will be their blessing and their curse.

_With their powers they will gain the fate which they can't deny_.

Lighting the lights which lie in their hands, waking the guards to help them.

All together, they must create what the universe needs the most.

Keeping the bond alive they unite, like one spirit, one heart, drumming to the same beat.

But while they try, the hope will start to fade.

The line is thin, the future is fragile, and the cost too high to keep the peace.

The answer lies in the six ones.

But beware of the heavy wave on the fiftieth day.

_And if they fail, the Balance of the Elements will be lost forever_.

But even if this happens the last resort will show the way.

In the end hope will never die.

_One man can make the difference, as long as there is courage in his heart._

The answer is hidden within the fifth.

The shield will hold, but shatter later.

One will pay the price so the others can survive.

This is what we call sacrifice."

My heart was pounding like crazy in my chest and my throat running dry. As long as Dark Magician Girl was reading I was holding my breath. Few times in my life had I ever felt so scared, and without doubt this was one of them.

We all were left in an awkward silence not daring to speak, move or even blink.

"What does all this mean?" Crow whispered and the end.

"This is so confusing, and definitely not clear," Aki commented. She was pale as ghost, trying to keep her voice steady to hide her fears.

"Can you explain it?" my sister asked.

I tried to swallow the lump in my throat.

Dark Magician Girl tried to comfort us but with no success; I was scared, worried and confused. "Don't worry my friends. I will explain everything, line by line, and word by word. Please, prepare yourself: what you are about to hear isn't pleasant."

* * *

_Two of you guessed right: she is Dark Magician girl! And finally the full Prophecy… (Special credits to **azure blue espeon** for helping me) but what it means? Stick with me and you will find out. I'm so touched by your support. Some of you already know that my time is freaking limited and I was thinking to stay out of FFnet for a while (not forever!). But the same day I was thinking of it I saw all those reviews… and some of you offered to give me a hand (or a pair of eyes) beta-ing my chapters… I'm all emotion… your reviews and your support means a lot to me! Thank you all! :)_

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove _spaces)

_My thanks to: _**The Man with Imagination**_, _**Aysu**_, _**Carlos-sama**_, _**G.A.****AnimeFan4**_, _**Scarletleaf66**_, _**PrincessWindNight**_, _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**_, _**MarauderRebelFan**_, _**ObsessedwReading**_, _**SamSam The Sammy Sam**_, _**Karlina101**_ and _**franc14 **_for their reviews!_

My special thanks to my betas **_azure blue espeon_****_ and Aysu!_**

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	37. Explanations

**And since you already read chapter 37 here it is! OK this week you had 2 chapters! I will be more careful in the future! I hope things are clearer now and again I'm sorry... I made a mistake with the chapters...**

**Please go back in chapter 36 and read it! I know I'm terrible! :(  
**

* * *

**Chapter 37 – Explanations**

_Aki's POV_

No! Surely this won't be pleasant at all. My heart was beating like crazy now, and every attempt to control it was worthless. I didn't understand a single word from the Prophecy, but I did catch some meanings.

Like chaos and darkness, but since I already live this part I'm not surprised. Alright the part with the five humans, who will travel _amongst the worlds_… this isn't a surprise at all; I'm living this already. I can guess that we are those humans, but we are no warriors, and I don't know if I can be one. I have a gift, a special power, and I'm willing to use it to help everyone and save Yusei of course. But the part that still echoed in my head, making my blood roar in my ears, was the sacrifice of one man.

I looked my friends; angst was written in their faces too. Both Dark Magician Girl and Dark Sage exchanged a meaningfully glance. I swallowed and the mistress cleared up her throat, getting ready to speak again.

"My friends, I understand your fears," her voice dropped in compassion, but I doubted her deeply.

Yusei is our friend, my hero, my special one. _How is it possible for her to understand how I feel, and how scared I am?_

Rua rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "Um… mistress?"

"Yes?"

"Umm… I want to ask… actually I want to know…" Rua stammered awkwardly.

Dark Magician Girl frowned. "What you want to know Rua? I'm ready to explain every word of the Prophecy, is there something else you want to ask before I start?"

"Yes, well actually… in which part of the Prophecy we are now?" he finally asked.

Fear gripped my stomach. The question never cross my mind, but Rua was right; time is against us, which only mean we lived the bigger part of the Prophecy already.

"And how much time do we have left?" the worlds came out of my mouth without even realizing it.

The mistress went stiff, shifting her weight from one leg to another, "Unfortunately not much. We are almost at the end of the Prophecy but let's take things from the beginning."

"There is still time my child," Torunka tried to comfort me and my friends.

I shook my head unsure.

"Dark Sage already explained the first part to you."

Crow crossed his arms on his chest. "Yeah he did, the time came, the _white rivers _started fighting and their war affected everything."

"What a perfect start," Jack sneered.

"Actually not everything," Dark Magician Girl corrected and we all stared at her confused, "it's complicated, their war affected everything in our universe not everything in space."

"What you mean? Is there spaces untouched from the war?" Ruka asked.

"Sure places like that exist but it's out of our knowledge. To explain it quickly, the war affected the twelve Dimensions of our universe," Dark Magician Girl replied.

"The twelve different Dimensions that Yusei tried to find information on?" Jack guessed.

The mistress nodded, "Yes, our galaxy is composed of twelve different worlds. Each one is unique but they all coexist together in parallel. This is our universe, as there are others, but for which we have no knowledge. Some of the dimensions, you already know -you did visit them."

"The Desert World," I muttered. Fire Sorcerer said the same, but she also said Yusei didn't find information for all of them.

Something was telling me that this is vital information. After all Yusei is trapped in one world and we better find out where soon. So the more we learn the better.

"The Winged Beast World," Crow added.

"The first is Shadow Realm or World of Darkness, right?" Jack sneered again, his tone dry.

Dark Magician Girl nodded again, "The first world which was made through darkness. A realm that exists between the alternate dimensions of Duel Spirits," she paused for a moment before adding, "in there humans are tortured constantly, being forced to live visions of their dreams, being crushed until they give up on their individuality."

"That isn't a world, that is hell itself," Crow exclaimed.

"It's the most dangerous realm. Through the ages many humans tried to exploit Shadow Realm, and trapped others there for their own selfish reasons. Just like Pegasus, Marik, Yami Bakura, Yusuke, and more. Sometimes when someone is sent there, they are erased from the memory of others. Luckily your friend is still in your head," Torunka continued.

I grunted. There's no way to forget Yusei; he is not only in my head, but also in my heart. As long as I breathe I will never forget about him, _ever_!

"The Shadow Realm existed before life on Earth, and is the polar opposite of life although it's not death," Dark Magician Girl informed.

I swept dropped. For a moment I wonder if I'm the only one so scared here; the rest of my friends looks calmer than me. "But that world is shielded right? We can't go there -we need a Millennium Item or a Shadow Charm to open that world's gate, right?"

My eyes travel from Dark Magician Girl to Jack. He was the one who threw this idea at the first place. He remained silent with blank eyes.

"You are right Aki," the mistress replied and I finally let loose the breath I was holding.

"Oh man! We are lucky, because no one knows how much I don't want to go there," Rua huffed in relief too.

"I'm so sorry for telling you this, my friends," Dark Magician Girl avoided, making eye contact with any of us.

My heart skipped a beat hearing her. This isn't good!

"But under normal circumstances, yes, the gate to that world is sealed, no one can pass. As you rightly said, you need to have in your possession a special object. Only a Millennium Item or a Shadow Charm can open this portal."

"What you mean under normal circumstances?" Jack demanded to know.

"Before I say anything else there is something you should know, something important and vital."

Something in the tone of her voice made me to swallow my fears and opened my ears hooked. She started explaining with a low but steady voice. The entire time I was feeling weak in my legs and I felt a great need to sit down, but I tried my best to remain calm. It isn't time to be a coward and to refuse to believe the truth. When she finished I felt my head spinning around.

"And what if there are no normal circumstances?" Jack asked at the end.

"Like now?" Ruka's voice was dashed.

"Like now, the Hyper-fibers changed it, their force and energy's hunger made its way to all of the worlds and opened up every gate. And when I say all, I mean all." she replied sadly.

My heart pounded in my chest, making me feel sick to my stomach.

"But don't worry, all the wizards and spirits in the land did their best to close the gate to Shadow Realm again, and keep it closed this time," she rushed to added.

"That was one of the reasons of why Ancient Fairy and Regulus were so busy and couldn't come into contact with you Ruka," Dark Sage informed.

"If this gate reopens again…" Dark Magician Girl suddenly paused, unsure if she wanted to say more. She cleared her throat. "Well, this is the first dimension. Crow and Aki mentioned two more."

"There are the Dark World and the Spirit World too," Rua listed.

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "There is also my Realm."

"The Neo-Space World and the Human world. And here is where our knowledge and Yusei's file has left us," Jack said.

Dark Magician Girl winked. "That's what I'm here for then. There are four more worlds out there. The Underworld Dimension; that is the place where Juudai's friends were lost after they were sacrificed in order for the creation of the Super Polymerization card."

Jack face-palmed, "How did I not notice, it's obvious."

"You sure want an answer?" Crow snorted and the blond duelist glared at him.

"The other one is Exodia's Cave: a strange dimension which keeps that powerful beast under control."

"But why?" Ruka knitted her eyebrows.

"This monster has power similar to the Egyptians Gods and one of the Pharaoh's original Millennium Items guardians, Shimon, had sealed 'Exodia' -a long time ago- away due to its godly strength. His cave is one of the twelve dimensions."

"I see," the girl muttered.

"And the other two worlds?" Jack requested.

"The other two are the Astral and Barian World," Dark Magician Girl said and we looked at each other confused. "I know, those two worlds aren't well known in your days," her voice had a stranger tone and hinted that she knew something no one else knew.

"In our days?" Crow reiterated with wonder.

"Barian World, it's not a physical world, but a world made of various powerful energies," the mistress pointed out, ignoring Crow. "The Barian World bears animosity towards the Astral World and seeks to destroy it. However, the two worlds cannot directly interact with one another as both are made of energy. Clean pure energy."

"No physical form?" I asked.

"Yup, none at all," Dark Magician Girl affirmed, "and you don't have to worry about those worlds. They also need keys to open up those gates; of course under normal circumstances too. So that means the _white rivers' _war can open the portals easily."

"So that's all the twelve dimensions of our universe: Shadow Realm, Desert World, Winged Beast World, Dark World, Spirit World, Neo-Space World, Human World, Dominion of the Beast World, Exodia's Cave, Underworld Dimension, Astral and Barian World," Dark Sage summarized.

There was a dead silence where no one dared to breathe, as their words slowly stared to set in.

Crow started slowly. "So… the Hyper-fibers' war affected only those twelve dimensions, because they make up our universe, right?"

Dark Magician Girl smiled widely, "Right! And now let's see the second part of the Prophecy, shall we?"

I grimaced hearing this. She was making it sound like we have another choice, but the truth is, that we definitely don't.

"_Five humans will travel amongst the worlds, struggling without a choice. Two women and three men, but neither alone," _she repeated the words.

"This is what Hanako told us at the Winged Beast World. With a little bit of different wording but the point is the same," Ruka remarked.

"But she also said that this part of the Prophecy changed and there are no five but six humans," I filled.

"What? Ah yes!" the mistress looked surprised for a moment, but then she smiled and relaxed. "Umm, the news can travel fast, but it worked out like a broken phone."

"You mean there is no change?" Jack concluded.

"Technically no, there is still five, but the answer is also yes, something changed about the number."

"Can you spell it out and leave the riddles for another day?" Jack tried to keep his voice calm, but it was clear as day that he was running out of patience.

"Of course I will," Dark Magician Girl assured, "You see there are five humans who traveled amongst the words. Those humans are you," she pointed us with one hand, "_Two women and three men!"_

"What?" I gasped. Then my eyes widened as I realized. "Of course… Ruka, Jack, Crow, Rua, and myself."

Dark Magician Girl winked. "There you go, you said it yourself, two women and three men! Yusei didn't travel with you, because he is already here, before you opened Momentum's gate."

"Alright this is us," Jack mused utter confusion, "But then why did Hanako, and all the others affirm that there is one more man?"

"Because there is," she insisted and opened her mouth again.

"Did the Prophecy change or not?" Jack cut her off.

"There wasn't a change in the prophecy, but an addition. It talks about five people who will be traveling but the Warriors are six. If you noticed the part that says _neither alone_," she finally explained.

"That means Yusei?" I asked at the end.

She nodded. "Yes… and no."

"Again!" Rua exclaimed, holding his head with two hands, "Oh man! All the answers are yes but no, or no but yes? Why must things be so complicated?"

Poor Crow nodded with the same expression on his face.

Dark Magician Girl chuckled. "Don't worry Rua, I will explain it. Alright it means Yusei, but not only him. Because at the next line it says, each will count as one, but they are two."

"Now what's that supposed to mean?" Jack burst out.

Dark Magician Girl looked at him with a strict glance and for one more time, Jack shut his mouth. "Right, what does this mean?" she winced and turned her back to us lifting her scepter, "I will show you who the rest are, to help you understand it fully."

Over a dozen torches suddenly blazed at the same time illuminating the room from corner to corner. The room was much bigger than it seemed at first glance and looking more closely at the walls, I noticed paintings and drawings.

"What are those?" Crow stared one painting, but it was Ruka who pulled our attention.

"No!" she cried and covered her mouth with both of her hands.

"Ruka, what's up?" he brother asked in utter confusion and I turned my attention to the walls.

A strange painting was hanging there. Crimson Dragon itself and our ace monster in a battle field; I recognized the enemy immediately and shivered at the view. It was so dark and so… alive. It was like the painting was real; like I was watching the past come to life before my eyes. "The Earthbound Gods?"

"That is the ancient battle," Ruka seemed like she forced herself to talk. "I have seen this battle before in my visions."

I swallowed the knot on my throat. _So this is what she saw?_

"And not only this battle my friends," Dark Magician Girl informed and pointed us to see more.

The room was filled with paintings with battles, but not all of them had the Crimson Dragon in it.

"Those are the Windows of the Past," the mistress' voice was cold like ice, and I felt the temperature of the room fall sharply, "And they represent the most important events, which took place in the world. From the beginning of time, many battles were given for the salvation and preservation of balance. Some battles from ancient beasts such as Legendary Dragons or Egyptian Gods, others from Crimson Dragon and his warriors."

"The Signer Dragons," I murmured.

"The Elements Dragons," Rua corrected.

The mistress' voice remained cold and strict as she continued. "Exactly, you mastered those dragons with eternal bonds. You cannot fight without them, and they cannot fight without you. You are count as one."

* * *

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove _spaces)

My special thanks to my betas **_azure blue espeon_****_ and Aysu!_**

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	38. Temple

**Chapter 38 – Temple**

_Rua's POV_

"We count as one but we are two," Ruka said in a quiet voice.

"So this part of the Prophecy is referring to both us and our dragons," Jack mused.

Dark Magician Girl nodded, "Yes, and you will fight to save the universe. Not only the five of you but _all _of you. The small addition to the Prophecy was a blurry part regarding the Element of Wind. Sensei explained why the Crimson Dragon chose to give this Element to Black Feather when Life Stream had no master at that time. After Rua become a Signer, the warriors became six and not five."

"So back to the war; it's all of you, along with your dragons, who will fight to save all of the worlds in our universe and seal the gates once again," Dark Sage said.

I felt my breathing become heavier.

Crow suddenly spoke up, "But we have no chance of winning. How are we going to fight the Hyper-fibers?"

"You will fight in another way. First, you have to close the gates among the worlds, so the energy won't escape from one realm to another, causing problems everywhere," Dark Sage explained.

"And second, you have to create the Shield to protect the universe and the twelve dimensions," Dark Magician Girl continued.

"What kind of Shield?" Aki asked.

This was new information and another burden of responsibility if anyone asked me.

"In order to explain what the Shield is, we have to make a small trip."

"And go where?" Crow knitted his eyebrows.

"Into another dimension," Dark Magician Girl replied like it was the most obvious thing.

"But where?" Jack demanded.

"We will visit Exodia's cave."

We exchanged some startled looks, before I asked, "Why do we have to go there? Is he a part of this Shield?"

He is a powerful monster, that would make sense, but Dark Magician Girl refuted my thoughts.

"Not only Exodia and his cave are in this realm," the mistress muttered, lifting her scepter and the room become darker again as the torches extinguished all at the same time. "When we get there you will understand," she added seeing our confusion and gestured for us to follow.

I scratched the back of my head. _What is happening here? _I had heard so much information in the last few… hours or days, I have no idea, but I think if I hear another word I'm gonna pass out. My mind can't hold any more, but I have a hunch- actually I'm 99.9% sure- that we still have a lot to learn.

This is madness, a chaotic mess of information that's actually worse than the chaos that Hyper-fibers were causing. I tried to choke back a groan as we left the Prophecy room and follow the lovely Dark Magician Girl. At first I thought we were going back to the throne room to use the portal through which we first entered this realm, but the mistress led us to the lower levels of the castle. We descended several staircases and went through labyrinth passages and tiny corridors.

"Where are we going?" I heard Crow's voice break the silence, and I jumped.

It was so dark down here, so quiet, so peaceful and his voice echoed through the chaotic maze of the bowels of the castle.

"You want to give me a heart attack?" I muttered and I saw my sister rolling her eyes.

"We have to reach the next portal," Dark Magician Girl replied without a single glance as she kept leading our steps deeper into the tunnels.

"Why can't we use the same portal from the throne room?" I asked shyly. Maybe my question is silly but I really wanted to know.

"We are going to use a real portal this time my child," Dark Sage replied instead of the mistress, but she gave me a slight smile, making me blush a little.

"You mean the previous one wasn't a real gate?" Ruka asked.

The mistress turned to look at us. "No it wasn't. It was only an Interspaced Window."

"And what is that?"

"It's an instrument of communication through dimensions. Almost everyone can use them, but only wizards can activate them and transform the Window into a Door. So not only can we stay in contact but -if there is a need- we can move from one world to another and transfer others with us too; just like we did with all of you."

"That's sounds interesting," Aki mused.

Dark Magician Girl continued, "But to do this, two or more magicians are necessary and shouldn't be in the same dimension. That's the reason why to be able to travel to Exodia's cave now we have to use a gateway and not an Interspaced Window."

And with this explanation we kept walking through the seemingly endless dungeons, until we finally reached somewhere: a dead end. _Wait, what?!_

"A dead end?" Jack asked incredulously, and he wasn't the only one, we all exchanged a couple of puzzled glances.

The Mistress chuckled and Dark Sage nodded. "Now it looks like a dead end, but our eyes are not always able to see what is hidden beneath the lines. Whenever you are ready master," and she gestured to the stone wall with her hand.

"After you my dear," the wizard dipped his head slightly and smiled.

"Alright, then our guests first," she trailed her gaze on us, "the only thing you have to do is stay calm," she informed and before I managed to blink I felt something strange pressing into my body and blurring my vision.

"W-what…?" I tried to speak but my voice faded and died before the words came out of my mouth.

Everything my eyes were watching, colors, shapes, were mixed in a whirlpool like someone upset the reality and integrity of the senses. Only at that moment I saw scratches on the floor. The door wasn't in front of us on the stone wall, but below our feet on the floor we were all standing right now.

The same time the realization hit me, my feet left the ground and I stopped standing firmly on it. After being suspended for a few seconds, I fell. I was falling as if a whirlpool was pulling me with its suffocating embrace. A slight scream escaped my lips, but the falling sensation didn't last for long. The next second my feet slammed into the ground as I landed with a loud thud on what appeared to be the floor of a cold, creepy cave. I felt the moisture pressing against my spine and I shuddered.

"What is this place?" Crow rubbed his eyes, taking a closer look around the room.

It was an awful feeling. Like time in this realm had stopped and it was unknown when it would begin to flow again. This cave was so dark and cold, like a haunted place, as if someone pulled it out from a distant past, forgotten by everyone, even Gods.

"What are those tablets on the walls?" Aki shivered as fear gripped her and she rubbed her arms.

I had no idea and honesty: I didn't want to find out. This place was scaring me and I couldn't think of why Dark Magician Girl and Dark Sage brought us here in order to explain what this 'Shield' is.

"Monsters… Duel monsters are on those tablets, which, if you ask my opinion look like stones cards," Jack mused.

"It looks more like the Minus Curse!" Ruka exclaimed.

I felt my blood run cold. Yup, I knew this place was creepy.

"What's the Minus Curse Ruka?" Aki asked shocked.

"It was a spell that caused an unusual time-reversing phenomenon to occur in the Duel Monsters Spirit World," my twin explained.

"Is that what this is?" Crow turned to the wizards full of fearful hope that it was not.

"It looks like it, but it's not," Dark Sage comforted us.

"This is the place where all the Duel Monsters Spirits are resting for eternity. This is an ancient place, older than many other dimensions. Those stones you see, those tablets, are the life source of every Spirit in our Universe," Dark Magician Girl continued.

"What is this place?" Crow asked again and frowned looking around; wonder was written all over in his face.

"This place, this realm," Dark Magician Girl indicated around the room with her hands, "is a secret place where all the mythical monsters and Spirits first came into life."

I started at her completely bewildered. Then I turned my eyes to the walls again, taking a closer look.

"First came to life?" Ruka repeated hoarsely, her eyebrows rising in curiosity.

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "In our words this dimension is called 'Temple' and it's a very sacred ground. You may find it hard to believe but this realm is the birthplace of every spirit in the Duel Monster World. We all…" I was sure she was referring to her and her kind, "…first came to life opening our eyes into this place."

She looked around with nostalgia. For some reason her words cut like a knife. Freezing, I felt a cold chill creep up my spine. Now I know why I feel this place is ancient than time itself. _What kind of storyline is resting here, hidden in the shadows of those walls? _A great one I dare say and even if I don't like the feeling that this realm is creating in me, I found myself intrigued, eyes and ears wide open, anxious and ready to hear every word.

The mistress cleared her throat, getting ready to talk. "Duel monsters were first discovered by the humans in the ancient city of Atlantis, more than 10,000 years ago. The man who opened up a gate from his world to this one was none other than Ironheart -the first human who came in touch with the Duel Monsters Spirits. His world was the great city of Atlantis. When the monarch Dartz, king of the city and his son was corrupted by the Orichalcos Stone and tried to destroy the world with an army of Orichalcos Soldiers, his father, opposed him. Ironheart and Dartz's daughter, Chris, lead a group of refugees from the city to the nearby mountains."

I was hooked. _Am I dreaming? _I'm hearing about the greatest moment in history, ancient as time itself; the first contact between Humans and Duel Monster Spirits. As Signer and duelist myself, I'm capable enough to realize how important this story is. Not to mention that I'm hearing the story from the lovely Dark Magician Girl herself in the same realm where Ironheart first asked for help.

_What more could I ask for?_

"He went to a temple and requested the assistance of the Duel Monster Spirits, which they agreed to lend," the cute mistress informed, "he opened the gate from his realm to this one, searching for the creatures of ancient power; the knights Timaeus, Critias and Hermos, to assist them in a battle against Dartz. However the knights were turned into dragons by Dartz, to weaken their power."

My breath became heavy as I started to remember the story. I heard it before at the duel monster history lessons back at Duel Academy. It was one magnificent story, one of those that can make you shiver and speed up your heartbeat, but now the story was echoing with a different kind of power. Maybe because I wasn't only hearing the story in a classroom, but I was in the same land were Ironheart and his grand-daughter where.

Dark Sage continued with low voice, "Ironheart led an army of Duel Monster Spirits and the Legendary Dragons to battle against Dartz, the Orichalcos Soldiers and The Great Leviathan. After a battle known as the Battle of the Stone Wasteland, The Great Leviathan was defeated by Ironheart's army. Neither side was victorious and Atlantis sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Before his death, Ironheart sealed the doors to the Duel Monsters Spirit World, some were sealed away and others scattered across the world, until they would be needed again, leaving behind their spirits scattered across all the worlds."

"Some were left in the Egyptian pyramids, the Greek temples, the Aztec pyramids, the Egyptian mastabas," Dark Magician Girl took lead again, "The dragons were sealed in crystals and The Great Leviathan had its power drained before being sealed away back in its world. Those monsters are the same ones which fought all those hundreds of years ago."

I stared the stone tablets on the walls with awe.

"Why is Exodia sealed here?" Ruka suddenly asked.

I almost forgot the real name of this realm and why we were here.

"Is there any better place to seal one of the greatest and strongest monsters which ever walked in history, than in the same place where every Spirit is resting, including Exodia?" Dark Magician Girl retorted and I have to admit that she had a point. "Even though Exodia's prison was strong enough to keep him here, there once was a time when a human managed to release him from his containment, through the use of a human sacrifice, and used him in a battle."

"Did this human's name happened to be Amon, and his sacrifice was a young woman named Eco, whom which he was in love?" Jack asked with strained voice.

Dark Magician Girl simply nodded saying nothing. Fear gripped my stomach again.

"How…?" Crow knitted his eyebrows, but the blond duelist didn't let him finish.

"Yusei's file."

Crow shrugged. "What happened after that?"

"Exodia's controller lost the duel and vanished along with its cards and Exodia came back to his eternal prison."

"Simon knew what he was doing by sealing this monster here," Dark Sage muttered.

"Are we going to see him?" I asked before I could stop myself. I wasn't sure if I wanted to see this monster or not.

"No, we are not," she declared and I was both disappointed and relieved. "But I'm going to show you some other monsters, and I'm sure you are going to find them equally important, if not more."

I frowned looking my sister, but she was as stunned as I was.

"What other monsters? I thought you brought us here to the Temple to explain what the 'Shield' is," Jack asked,

"Yes, you are right Jack, but you see…" Dark Magician Girl looked like she was trying to find the right words to explain, refusing to meet his eyes, or anyone's eyes and staring at the floor. "Before I explain what the shield is, I have to show you… actually you have to learn something important, really important."

"Huh?" Crow and I said together.

"Before we tell you everything about the Shield, you must hear what we have to tell you," Dark Sage said calmly with a hint of sadness if I wasn't mistaken.

Alright, something is going on here and I think I'm not going to like it.

Dark Magician Girl cleared her throat. "Well, follow me please, this place is bigger than you thought and we must find a certain room- the Royal Room."

After exchanging another startled look we followed her quietly. Torunka followed us at the end of the line. The lovely mistress was leading us deep into the dark tunnels of the Temple realm.

"In here," she showed us a huge door and waving her scepter over the big lock, she unlocked it with a 'click' and pushed it to open wide so we could enter.

"WOW!" the word burst from my mouth without me even realizing it, but I couldn't help it.

* * *

_They traveled again… how many dimension our friends visited in their quest to find Yusei? hmmm many… What Rua saw in the Royal Room? Am I the only one who sees this Realm (Exodia's cave) as something more than just a world to keep the duel monster down? The time is flying… hurry up!_

_My special thanks to: _**The Man with Imagination **(x2)_, _**Carlos-sama** (x2)_, _**ObsessedwReading**_, _**Scarletleaf66** (x2)_, _**Karlina101**_, _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate** (x2)_, _**PrincessWindNight** (x2)_, _**G.A.** **AnimeFan4** (x2)_, _**MarauderRebelFan**_, and _**Aysu**_, for their reviews._

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove _spaces)

_My special thanks to my betas ****__azure blue espeon__ and **Aysu**!_

_If you liked it review! If you don't, review anyway... __^_^_


	39. Elements Warriors

**Chapter 39 – Elements Warriors**

_Rua's POV_

The same moment I stepped into the room I understood immediately why this chamber is called Royal Room. The Monsters which rested here made my breath choke in my throat. I stared at them in awe, feeling my heartbeat rise with every passing second.

"Here rests the greatest of all beings," Dark Magician Girl said with a strange voice.

I nodded in agreement, keep staring at the great statues.

"For these beasts, tablets are not enough," Dark Sage dipped his head with respect.

"I'm not surprised," I heard Jack say and it was true.

_How is it possible anyway?_ Those creatures are too great for just tablets. Because standing there, before our eyes in all their glory…

"The three Egyptian Gods also known as the Three Phantom Gods," Dark Magician Girl announced.

I nodded in agreement, eyes still on the great duel monsters.

"Slifer the Sky Dragon, known as Sky Dragon of Osiris, Obelisk the Tormentor, known as Giant God Soldier of Obelisk and the highest of the three, The Winged Dragon of Ra, known as Winged God Dragon of Ra!" Dark Sage said.

I felt my jaw drop. Even in an hour like this, with time hanging over our heads, with Yusei still missing, with a Prophesy still unclear, and an unknown future ahead of us…. I couldn't help but feel lucky. I'm lucky to be here in the Temple and seeing what I'm seeing.

"Maximillion Pegasus created cards depicting the three Egyptian Gods, for his game _Duel Monsters_," the wizard informed us and for a moment my mind travel back into my memories, remembering their story and part in history.

The mistress nodded in agreement. "The Egyptian gods are one-of-a-kind all-powerful cards created by Pegasus, who modeled them after three Ancient Egyptian divine beasts whose likenesses surround the Millennium Puzzle on the stone tablet said to hold the memories of the nameless Pharaoh. Although things didn't actually work as he planned, because when he decided to make them into cards, everyone involved in the project was attacked by the spirits of the Egyptian God monsters."

"Attacked?" Aki covered her mouth and Dark Magician Girl nodded.

"So Pegasus decided to create the cards on his own, under the protection of his Millennium Eye. However the souls of the Gods came to dwell in the cards, making them powerful weapons. When Pegasus finished the artwork on the prototypes, he had a nightmare about the cards attacking him. After, he informed that he had angered the Egyptian Gods."

"I think that this is one of those things that shouldn't be messed with," Crow mused and Jack grunted.

"On realizing this, Pegasus regarded their creation as one of his greatest mistakes and he tried to destroy the god cards, but couldn't bring himself to do it."

"I can't believe what I'm about to say, but those cards were dangerous, he should have destroy them," Jack sneered.

"You are right because those cards _were_ dangerous," Dark Sage affirmed.

"More than you can ever imagine," Dark Magician Girl continued. "The wielder of these great cards is able to acquire the title of 'Duel King', but in the wrong hands, they are capable of causing legitimate injury or even death. These monsters were only capable of being summoned by the Pharaoh, the only one who could master and control their unlimited power."

"The same Pharaoh who later took the identity of Yuugi Mouto?" I asked staring at the great statues. Secretly I wished I could see those cards.

"Yes," Dark Sage replied.

"Why does that news is not surprise me at all?" Crow muttered, shaking his head.

"So he had the Egyptian supreme council of antiquities bury the cards in different locations in the Valley of the Kings on Egypt. The Rare Hunters or Ghouls managed to steal the "Slifer the Sky Dragon" and "The Winged Dragon of Ra" cards. However the Egyptian supreme council of antiquities was able to prevent them finding the "Obelisk the Tormentor" card. Ishizu Ishtar, from the council, later gave it to Seto Kaiba, with the request he host a dueling tournament to lure Marik and his Rare Hunters to the city, bringing the other god cards with them. Kaiba, intent on claiming the cards for himself to secure his title as the strongest duelist, agreed and hosted the Battle City tournament."

"But he didn't," I gushed, "during the tournament Yuugi Mouto won his Slifer card, and not only that, at the end Yuugi managed to earn all the cards, all the three of them."

"Pegasus made a terrible mistake creating those cards," Dark Sage said, "and not only those cards."

"Those cards are dangerous," Dark Magician Girl added, "the line of the history showed his mistake, as many tried to master those Beasts, and two of them succeed and they didn't have good intentions. Seto Kaiba managed to master Obelisk and Marik mastered Ra. We owe a lot to Yuugi and the Pharaoh's Spirit who helped him to take the gods back into his responsibility."

"He wasn't the King of Game, for nothing," Crow chuckled and Jack grunted at the 'king' word.

I offered him a grin. "Don't worry Jack; he is not a threat to your title. After all he lived before our time."

"Hah! I wish I could challenge him, and then we would be able to find out who is the real king once and for all," Jack stated flatly.

Crow cleared his throat. "Sorry Jack, but since you still haven't beaten down Yusei I think he should challenge him, if he could."

"Are you mocking at me?" Jack roared.

"Don't act like that," Crow snorted, trying to hide his smile.

"But Yuugi was the best and he had the Egyptian god cards. His deck is technically unbeatable," Aki said.

"The Egyptians gods are indeed three great Monsters but they are not the only ones," Dark Sage stated and turned his gaze elsewhere in the big room, showing with his scepter three more statues. "And here rests the statues of the three Legendary Dragons."

Dark Magician Girl cheered, flashing a huge smile. "The heroes of my realm: Timaeus, Critias and Hermos. The same warriors who fought at the ancient battle of Atlantis. As I said, they were knights were turned into dragons by Dartz, to weaken their power."

"Again, Yuugi released them from the spells using the cards which Pegasus created, for this only purpose," I added.

Ruka smiled, peeked at Jack's direction. "Here again. And Yuugi was there to save the day one more time."

"He did. And I was there too, the battle against Dartz wasn't easy," Dark Magician Girl smiled.

"Just like Yusei saved us a couple of times," Aki murmured, dropping her voice to a whisper.

"And here," Dark Sage pointed for us to follow him deeper into the Royal room, showing us three more great Monsters.

My jaw dropped once again. I couldn't believe it.

"The "Sacred Beasts", known also as the "Three Phantom Demons" are three powerful monsters," Dark Magician Girl explained.

I shivered feeling somehow weak in my knees and a great need to seat down. I was in the legendary realm were the greatest among the Duel Monsters are resting for real and not in a simple game. Seeing all those statues I was feeling how tiny I was. I was a boy, just a boy who lived some years on earth, I was a Signer too, I fought to save the world, to save my world and I was so proud of it... and here now, in the Royal Camber of Exodia's Cave laying my eyes on some creatures older than time itself.

"Those Beasts were also created by Pegasus as cards in a way that each monster resembles one of the Egyptian Gods and are seen as dark counterparts to them, in a similar vein to the Wicked Gods," Dark Magician Girl, explained, "Uria, Lord of Searing Flames know as God Flame Emperor Uria, Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder know as Descending Thunder Emperor Hamon and Raviel, Lord of Phantasms know as Phantom Demon Emperor Raviel."

"In game play, they also have similarities to the Egyptian Gods," Jack informed with one finger on his chin and one more on his cheek. "For example, in order to summon one, the player must send three cards of a certain type to the Graveyard depending upon which monster the player plans to Summon. Their Summoning conditions are much easier to be fulfilled."

"Yes, but again, life is not like the game you humans created," Dark Sage said for the third time.

"The Sacred Beasts are legendary creatures whose cards were sealed by Kagemaru underneath Duel Academy behind the Spirit Gates, which requires seven Spirit Keys to open, as he couldn't unlock their power at the time. They also say that if those cards ever be set free from their stronghold, chaos and darkness will envelop the world, destroying everything," Dark Magician Girl continued with their part of the history.

"The same duel Academy where Yuuki Juudai was studying, right?" Ruka asked.

The mistress nodded. "The seven Spirit Gates were gates hidden deep below the Duel Academy, used to protect the Sacred Beasts. They can only be opened by obtaining the seven Spirit Keys, which can only be won in a duel. So the chancellor Samejima gave one key to the seven top duelists at Duel Academy. One of the selected Duelists was none other than Yuuki Juudai, the one who manage to defeat Kagemaru and save the world."

"Yubel was later able to break the gate and claim the Sacred Beasts, but she failed in the end," Dark Sage added.

"I feel like I'm dreaming," Aki mused and I rushed to agree with her along with everyone else.

"I can't believe I'm here seeing those Monsters," Crow said with awe.

"We are all duelists, and we fought years ago to save the world, just like Yuugi and Juudai did before us," Ruka swallowed with her eyes still in on the statutes.

"I know my friends. That's one of the reasons I showed you the Royal Room but we still have one last statute to see," the Mistress replied with concern.

"What do you mean 'one of the reasons'?" Jack asked knitting his eyebrows.

She nodded. "Yes, because the other one is the most important of all. You must understand," her voice grew serious, "all monsters and beasts who rest in here are holding formidable forces, terrifying forces capable of destroying parts of the universe, even entire dimensions. There were many battles that took place over time, where these monsters took part for the salvation of the world and many fought evil with them."

I knitted my eyebrows staring at her with wonder. "Why you are saying this?" I asked puzzled. Something was telling that she was about to reveal something vital.

"I will tell you in a bit, but please, open your eyes and ears, before I show you the last one," she insisted tensely, "due to the incredible power, few have managed to tame these beasts. And those who have done it, created unbreakable bonds with the monsters. Their shoulders were burdened with a huge duty and a big responsibility."

"To save the world…" Ruka muttered.

"The Pharaoh and later Yuugi mastered the three Egyptians gods. Kagemaru tried to master the Sacred Beasts, but he failed and was defeated by Yuuki Juudai. This boy without knowing it, mastered those cards, but he returned them under the Duel Academy again without knowing that these beasts offered him their faith and their allegiance. But he chose to bond with another spirit and friend from another life, Yubel," Dark Magician Girl empathized.

"He mastered the Sacred Beasts and he didn't even realize it?" Jack exclaimed in shock, with wide eyes, "I can't believe it! He was far worst and unbelievable idiot than Crow is!"

"Hey!" Crow challenged, crossing his arms on his chest, "I'm here and I'm listening."

"Shut up both of you and let her finish!" it was Aki who burst out and glared at both Jack and Crow.

I grimaced and flinched under the tone of her voice as it was like you-better-do-what-I-said-or-else and the childhood friends shut it in record time.

Dark Magician Girl cleared her throat. "And at the end of the time line, until our days are done it's you."

"The Signers, right?" Aki waved her head tensely.

"Signers? Yes, you were able to master the Signers Dragons, however," she raised her head and I held my breath, "Before they become Crimson Dragon's warriors and gained the 'Signers' title they were known as the Elements Dragons. So…" she trailed her eyes to look each one of us, "you are both, Signers and Elements warriors. Your dragons' forces are running in your veins, and you were able to mastered them and made unbreakable bonds with them," she added turning her head at the far end of the room.

Suddenly I felt the blood leaving my face when I followed her lead. There where the last statute in the Royal Room; a great one of the Crimson Dragon itself, surrounded by six really huge tablets of our aces and Signers Dragons. I narrowed my eyes as my heart tightened with fear. There where something… strange about our dragons' tablets.

"What happened to them?" my twin asked without being able to hide the fear from her voice.

_What the heck is this?_ I was confused and not only that. It's the first time in my short life I had heard so much information at once. I feel like I'm dreaming but right now I'm seeing a dreamless nightmare, because I'm definitely not dreaming at all. I wish I was, but I'm not.

Dark Magician Girl's words were sounded and resounded in my head spinning and making me dizzy. If I was aware of any of that information a couple of months ago, I would just laugh and walk away, but now I was ready to believe anything. Even if she says that I'm pink with green spots… _But this?_ _What the heck have happened to our dragons?_

The situation was more than serious than I thought and I had a bad feeling about it, really bad and even if the only funny thing in here is Crow's –and I bet mine too- puzzled faces, I can't even think how important this is. Our dragons were in tablets, unlike the other legendary monsters within the room, but I can think a reason of why. After all, the tablets were huge and the great statute of Crimson Dragon was among them. They were his warriors, his servants, so it's not a surprise to see his statute and their tablets.

But the tablets were…

* * *

_Oups! what's wrong with their tables? Well stay with me and you will find out! Also I made a POLL for this story... if any of want want to vote, I would love to hear your thoughts._

_Follow and like me in my new FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** **517827508268822** _(remove _spaces)

_My thanks to: _**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**, **The Man with Imagination**_, _**Carlos-sama**_, _**Scarletleaf66**_, _**G.A.** **AnimeFan4**_, _**MarauderRebelFan**_ and _**ObsessedwReading**_, for their reviews!_

My special thanks to my beta **_Aysu!_**

_If you like it review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	40. Shield

**Chapter 40 – Shield**

_Crow's POV_

"Frozen?" Ruka asked, while her brother kept staring at our ace monsters in utter confusion and shock.

Dark Magician Girl nodded slowly, and her voice cracked as she explained, "They couldn't fight this battle alone; they needed their masters'—_your_—help... But they gave up almost all of their energy in an attempt to protect the gates... So, instead, they froze in their tablets, resting and ready to be called again."

"What do you mean by 'resting'? How can they rest at a time like this?!" Jack hollered.

Dark Magician Girl turned to face him. "It's not of their choice. Duel Monster Spirits cannot just die. We feed on energy but the Hyper-fibers had none left and we are all weak now. When a Spirit loses all of its energy, it returns to here—in Exodia's Cave—and reverts back to its tablet until it becomes strong again."

"Interesting..." I muttered, scratching the back of my head. I had never thought about it before, but I had to admit that she had a point—Duel Monster Spirits don't die. Still, I couldn't help but to ask, "You mean never?" The question had slipped from my lips even without me realizing it. She returned with a confused look, however, so I added, "I mean, you guys _never_ die?"

The young wizard exchanged a quick glance with the older one. "Um..."

I could've sworn I saw a wounded look in her eyes, even if it was there for just a second. My heart sank. Yup, something was wrong and it definitely had something to do with our dragons too.

Torunka admitted, "Although it's rare and difficult, it's not completely impossible."

Multiple gasps were heard and I saw from the corner of my eyes Ruka's scared expression. I momentarily wondered what had she realized to react like that.

My thoughts were cut short, though, when Dark Sage spoke again. "When a common Spirit loses all of its energy, its tablet will break, and it will be lost forever. But a stronger monster with higher energy level remains in its tablet and, depending on its remaining energy, it can just vanish or..." he trailed off, turning and fixing his gaze on our dragons' tablet instead.

It took my slow brain a minute to register his words and arrive at the conclusion, which ended up causing my blood to run cold.

"NO! What are you saying? That Life Stream Dragon is one step away from dying?!" Rua cried, absolutely astonished.

"Shock" was not even enough to describe our reactions—Aki drew in a sharp breath, covering her mouth; Ruka was trying really hard to ignore the tears that were threatening to spill; and Jack... Well, his face was just hard and lifeless.

"I won't allow something like that to happen, not to Red Demon or any of our dragons," he stated flatly, his gloved fists clenching so hard that they trembled agitatedly.

I couldn't agree more. Black Feather was—_is_—not only a simple card to me, but also a friend. The thought of losing him was unbearable and had never even crossed my mind before. Jack was right; we couldn't allow something like that to happen.

"Is this the reason why we couldn't summon our dragons?" Ruka asked.

"Oh man!" Rua cried again, grabbing a fistful of his green hair. "This is terrible! If they freeze with almost no energy left to keep them alive, then... there's no way can we summon them...!"

"Can they be saved?" Aki asked as she looked at Black Rose's frozen tablet, eyes crestfallen.

Dark Sage nodded slowly.

Well, that was assuring to know... I breathed out in relief; I didn't realize I was holding my breath until just a moment ago. Now, the question is: why did our dragons get frozen in the first place? And what can we do to help them?

So I asked.

"They'd spent almost all of their energy to keep the gates closed, protecting us and the twelve dimensions," the old wizard replied. "They put themselves at the front as shields. But one day, they cracked, turning back to their tablets and becoming frozen in time, unable to help us anymore. We'd tried our best—_anything_—in order to wake them up again, but we failed; every attempt failed."

"So that means... we can't help them?" Rua asked, sounding a bit distressed.

This couldn't be happening. Well, this _is_ already happening but there must be a way; I had to grasp hold that there _must__ be _a way to save them. Our dragons would wake up again; they had to. We all turned to face Dark Sage, looking at him with eyes full of hope, anxiety, and worry; and I was no exception myself.

"We'd tried everything, with no success, but you"—his gaze fell upon us intensely—"you are the Elements Warriors. You hold more than courage in your hearts. You are the ones who managed to master the Elements Dragons, creating unbreakable bonds with them. You! ... You and your powers—your special gifts... You are the only ones strong enough to wake them up again."

A dead silence fell over the room as we try to absorb the effect of his words and this crazy reality. Yes, my friends could wake up their dragons; after all, all of them are gifted...

_... But__ what __about me__?_

I had no gift; I didn't have any special powers. I couldn't help Black Feather. I couldn't save my ace monster, my friend. Knowing this, and just thinking about it, made me want to scream in utter frustration...!

But I held it back, biting my lips. An invisible dead weight hung on my shoulders as I dug my nails deep into my palms, trying to repress the fury erupting from within. I was angry at myself, yes, and the pain was a good distraction to keep me from feeling so worthless.

"What can we do to help them?" Aki asked hastily, hoping to get the answers as fast as she could.

"You have to wake them up, along with your powers," Dark Sage replied. "And after you set them free, together, you will create the Shield that we need."

"This way, you will continue their work and protect us all," Dark Magician Girl added.

By the time they had finished talking, jaws were hanging, eyes were widening, and a befuddled look was plastered on many of our faces, but a little known fact hadn't changed at all: I couldn't help my dragon…

It was a fact that kept plaguing my mind no matter how hard I tried to ignore it. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stay focused and not let my thoughts run wild, where guilt and helplessness were prevalent.

"Remember the Prophecy?" Dark Sage asked. We nodded. "You are the warriors; you all hold powers like no others"—again, I bit my lips; he kept saying "you all", but I think that didn't apply to me—"and that is why you are going to fight."

"But how?" Aki wondered. "What should we do?"

The old wizard addressed, "Before we talk about that, I want to ask: are you ready to fight, to save your dear friend and everyone else, and everything in our universe?"

Jack's reply was immediate. "Of course I am! Yusei is our friend."

"I don't care about myself; I'm willing to do anything in my power," Aki stated; while Rua raised a hand, agreeing enthusiastically, "I'm in! Even if I have no idea how, I will do my best!"

Ruka's response was just a soft and barely audible, "Me too", but her eyes had said otherwise; something had flashed in them, something like determination and inner strength. She was closer to the Spirits, more than anyone else. Her gift was unique and very powerful.

And, finally, it was my turn. I wanted to chuckle bitterly, but I simply nodded. "I will help too," I said, but distinctively frowned at the next thought, _even if I am not like the others..._

Dark Magician Girl seemed to have sensed this, though, as she watched me with sympathetic eyes. I quickly composed myself. The last thing I needed was to let the others worry about me and my silly little emotions; they had much more important things to worry about.

Dark Sage scanned our faces for confirmation one last time, before he uttered, "Then you have no other way. I know this is a heavy burden on your shoulders, Elements Warriors, but you have to save what each one holds dear in your heart; from your friend, to your dimension, and everyone out there."

_He had a point, _I mused silently.

"Your powers are both a blessing and a curse," he continued. "Having the powers within you, we all rely on you. Your fate is bounded with your dragons, so whatever destiny awaits them, awaits you too. You cannot deny it."

"So, want it or not, we have to fight with them by creating the Shield?" Ruka asked.

Dark Magician Girl nodded before she started reciting the words from the Prophecy, "'_All together, they __must __create__ what the universe needs the most__'_. In this case, it is a shied; a shield to keep the energy away. You cannot fight the Hyper-fibers; they are too powerful, and you will be absorbed in no time... But you can create a wall; something we can all hide behind."

Jack furrowed his brows. "And what is this Shield?"

"The Shield is not something touchable. It's more like a spiritual shield, a wall of pure energy—_your_ energy," Dark Sage explained.

Rua's eyebrows shot up in astonishment. "_Our_ energy? But if we use our energy, then that means, we will... w-we... have to give... our..."

I gasped, realizing what he was trying to say, but Torunka spoke again, "No, my child"—I heaved a sigh of relief—"you don't have to give all of your energy to create the shield. But yes, you will need to give some. However, remember what the Prophecy says, '_the guards will help you__'_."

"You mean the guardians of the five Elements, right?" I asked.

"Yes. The Elements Dragons are yours; you mastered them; you bounded your fate with them; you are the only ones who can wake them up from their tablets again; you are able to share the same heartbeat... You along with your dragons will keep the bonds alive; you will become one—each one with your ace monster and all together. You will harmonize, as the Prophecy says, like one heart beating the same beat."

As the wizard was explaining the lines in the Prophecy, my mind somehow wandered through my memories. Although only some days had passed, it felt like it was months ago when Team Ragnarok had opened the Momentum's Gate using their Rune Eyes, along with their three Aesir God cards and the Different Dimension Gate.

Kiryu and Misty had said that we had to stand in a circle and hold our hands, sticking with one another no matter what; and even though we failed—as in, separated from one another—I still remembered the strange feeling inside me, like I was able to hear... Well, not only hear but also _feel _everyone else's heartbeats, like they were beating inside my body... as if they were a part of me… just as mine beat in theirs... I could almost feel that Yusei was back there with us too.

It was a strange yet magical feeling; our heartbeats had synchronized as one.

Then, we landed in the Desert World without Jack and Rua, and I had no time to think of anything else other than the seriousness of the situation.

"It's not the first time we fought together. If this is what we have to do, then we'll do it," Jack said, though his voice suggested subtle hints of skepticism; probably because he didn't believe in cheesy things like "hearts beating as one".

I released a slight chuckle. But that was easy for him to say. He had the Burning Soul ability, while I had nothing beyond my courage and will.

"Wait a minute," said Aki. "Does that mean that before we can save the universe, we have to save Yusei first?"

Dark Magician Girl sighed heavily. "That's true. You need Yusei and Stardust in order to create the Shield."

"But..." Aki was lost for words. Agony was written all over her face.

"Yusei must be saved _first_," Dark Sage emphasized. "Otherwise, the Shield won't be strong enough to hold against the Hyper-fibers; it will crack almost immediately."

"So we need to save Yusei first!" Aki exclaimed, and it was hard to tell if she was actually worried or happy with the news. Although, judging from her expression, it seemed to lean towards the latter.

"Yes, you'll all be in this together, in order to go on as the Prophecy says. After you wake the dragons, and with Crimson Dragon's blessing, you will fight like one heart." I shifted my weight from one leg to another. Again, I said nothing as he continued, "After you created the Shield, the gates around the universe that connect all the different dimensions will close once again. The worlds will be safe from the Hyper-fibers' war. And _t__his_ is your mission."

"We all understand the gravity of the situation and how hard your fate is, but we need to count on you. You are the only ones who can do it, the only ones who can save us," Dark Magician Girl said.

Ruka shivered, covering her arms. "Ancient Fairy said the same thing when she first contacted me all those weeks ago..."

"You know… the next paragraph of the Prophecy is quite complicated..."

"Why? Are all the others not complicated?" I mumbled wryly.

"Sure, everything is on knife-edge; you will have to risk a lot into this mission, but your six dragons will be there too..."

"Wait, I have a question," Rua said suddenly, raising his hand. "Earlier, you mentioned something like 'with Crimson Dragon's blessing'. What do you mean by that?"

Dark Magician Girl began uneasily, averting her eyes, "Um... You see..."

I could tell that she was hesitating to tell us something, something important. I gulped; every part of me practically screamed "bad news is coming". We all waited impatiently until she was ready to face us again. I was sure I wouldn't like whatever she had to say though. "There will come a time when you guys will need him; you will need his protection and help."

"For what?" Jack asked, narrowing his eyes.

Dark Sage took a deep breath. "My friends, you understand that this won't be an easy task, right?"

"Absolutely," Aki stated, as a matter-of-factly, and we all nodded in agreement.

Torunka seemed to be choosing his words carefully... "When the Shield closes the gates, you"—he paused, as if he was forcing out the next words—"the gates will be locked again and you... will somehow be locked within the dimensions too."

I almost choked at that point. I _knew_ I wasn't going to like it.

"You mean we will be trapped here, just like Yusei?!" Jack burst out, glaring at him as if it was his fault.

"The possibilities are quite high. Only Ruka will be able to go back."

"Why only Ruka?" her twin wondered.

"Because of her gift," Dark Magician Girl explained. "Her ability to travel among the worlds and her special connection to the Spirit World will allow her to pass through, even with the closed portals in the way."

"I see..."

"And what about us? Will we be stuck here forever?" Jack demanded, his voice carrying an edge of indignation.

"There must be a way. The answer must be lying somewhere in the Prophecy... right?" I asked, a bit unsure.

The mistress gave me a small smile. "Actually, there_ is_ a way. And yes, there is a line inside the Prophecy."

"Which line?" Aki inquired.

"'_Lighting the lights which lie in their hands, waking the guards to help them__'_," Dark Magician Girl repeated the words in the Prophecy.

Jack instinctively looked at his palms. "The lights in our hands? What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh man, my head is going to explode any time soon," Rua said, scratching his head wildly with his two hands.

"In order to illuminate the lights again, you will need Crimson Dragon's help," the old wizard continued, only to confuse us further. "Actually, he is the one who will give you the lights, but you will need to make them shine once again, my friends."

My eyes blinked with incredulity. _Is __he__ saying what I __think __he__ is trying to say?_

"The light of your birthmarks must shine once more on your forearms. It means that you will have to become Signers again."

...

And what else could our reaction be other than to exchange a few startled glances?

* * *

_Oups! Not good! More information and nothing is going well! And what's this? They have to be signers again? And they have no choice…_

_Please follow and like me in my FB page: _**_www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /_**_ **517827508268822** __(remove _spaces)

_My thanks to: **Arm-flailing-Carlos**, _**_The Man with Imagination_**_, _**_Scarletleaf66_**_, _**_ObsessedwReading_**_, **Shadowhope4ever** and, **Aysu** for their reviews!_

_My special thanks to my lovely beta **LittleKrus**__!_

_If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... __^_^_


	41. Unique

**Chapter 41 – Unique**

_Aki's POV_

The silence which followed his words was as heavy as iron and as hard as diamond. _We have to be Signers again, all together? _It makes sense but I'm still confused. I don't know if I want to gain my birthmark again, glowing and throbbing in my forearm. Not because I don't want to help, but mostly because I'm afraid of the responsibilities for having it. The burden I have to carry once again in my life.

When the Crimson Dragon took our birthmarks away in our last ride together, at first I was a little sad -it was a part of my life back then, a part of me, but after a while I changed my mind and I was happy. Finally my life was in my hands and my hands only. No throbs, no danger, no risks, and no responsibilities. I was free to chase my dreams, and draw my path in life. I was free.

Rua recovered first from the shock. "Signers? That means that I'll gain my birthmark back again?"

I stared at him with awe and wonder. He was thrilled. He was enjoying this turn of events and looking forward to being one of the Crimson Dragon's chosen ones. I wasn't so sure about it myself, or how the others are feeling, but if by being Signer again, I will help to save Yusei and then all together we'll save the world, for one more time then I will do it.

I will do anything to help Yusei, to save him, to see him alive on his feet again putting a smile on my face. And when I say anything, I mean _anything_! Even if I have to jump out off a cliff.

'Why Yusei? Why him?' I cried silently.

"No wonder why we need Crimson Dragon then," Ruka mused skeptical, with one finger on her cheek and one more on her chin.

"But Crimson Dragon released us from this duty, years ago. Why choose us again this time?" Crow protested.

He looked a little stiff. I mean more than usual, like something was spinning in his head and I don't mean all this information and what we've been through these past few days. Like something else was bothering him, but if this is true then _why is he not sharing it?_

Dark Magician Girl nodded slowly. "We need you Elements Warriors, even the Crimson Dragon needs you, and at this hour he will choose you once again. He will give you your birthmarks, transforming you into Signers one more time so we can be able to help each other."

"What do you mean 'he needs us'?" Jack raised one eyebrow in doubt.

"The Crimson Dragon is also feeding from the Hyper-fiber's energy, and now he can't do that and his warriors are now frozen, unable to help him. But you can help, by wakening his Signer Dragons," Dark Magician Girl explained.

"He is a powerful monster damn it," Jack exclaimed angrily.

"The Crimson Dragon is not just a powerful monster. He is the embodiment of the Dragon Star, a god," Dark Sage informed us, and Jack's mouth dropped as this information caught him out off guard. And not only him.

"I think I remember the story," Ruka muttered.

"Can you explain it?" Rua asked with a slight smil.

I nodded in agreement; I wanted to hear the story too. Every piece of information is vital and we have to learn as much as we can, so we can help Yusei at the end.

Dark Magician Girl nodded again and cleared her throat, getting ready for another narration.

"10,000 years before the present days' events, the Crimson Dragon along with his chosen warriors, the Elements Dragons, fought with many enemies at the line of history. The Crimson Devil, Red Nova, known as Scar-Red Nova was one. There a Legendary Signer came forward from the ashes of a volcano and absorbed the Crimson Dragon's power, through Burning Soul, and used it to defeat and seal the Crimson Devil. His ability lives again inside you Jack," her eyes set on the blond duelist, but Jack only dipped his head in agreement.

"However, Scar-Red Nova is strongest of the Earthbound Immortals known as Earthbound Gods," Dark Sage continued, "but the Crimson Dragon had to face them again and 5.000 years before present days' events, the People of the Stars, called upon the "Dragon Star" for aid to save their lands from the Earthbound Gods that threatened the peace of their civilization. The "Dragon Star" answered their call and came down to Earth in the form of the Crimson Dragon."

"The ancient battle. I have seen this battle many times in my dreams," Ruka said.

Dark Sage nodded before adding, "When the star shined, the King knew it would be a message from their god, the Crimson Dragon. The dragon was then summoned to imprison an incarnation of an ancient evil in the earth. This evil is represented in the Nazca Lines. The Crimson Dragon fought the Earthbound Gods, with the help of its five servants. However instead of Black-Feather Dragon, Life Stream Dragon was present."

"My dragon," Rua muttered.

"According to the legend," Dark Magician Girl continued, "the Crimson Dragon could only be summoned with the help of the Signers, whose individual marks either represented the Heart, Hand, Tail, Wings, Foot and Head of the dragon."

We all look to our forearms by instinct, but nothing was there. After all none of us was a Signer anymore. I sighed heavily, soon we will be again.

"So this time, Crimson Dragon will make us Signers again to be able to summon him, and along with the Signers and Elements bonds, we will create the Shield?" Ruka summed up.

"Together," I heard myself saying.

Dark Magician Girl affirmed it. "Yes, we all need you. Your gifts are unique and special, and the Crimson…"

"Wait a minute," Crow almost yelled cutting her off, and we all turned our eyes on him surprised.

_What happened with him? _He was staring us tensely, with a hard, indescribable expression on his face, with a hint of sadness and anger.

"Crow are you ok?" I asked knitting my eyebrows in concern.

"Guys," for some reason he avoided looking us in the eyes, "I know that Yusei and the universe is in danger, I understand that we have to be Signers again, waking our dragons, and asking the Crimson Dragon to help us so we can be able to help him in return, and everything…"

"So what's your problem then?" the blond duelist asked icily.

"Isn't it obvious Jack?" Crow shouted, glaring his childhood friend.

"Are you a bloody idiot?" Jack growled and my eyes widen in shock.

I've stopped their arguments a couple of times before and I think it will be easy to do it again, but something stopped me this time. Crow looked somehow different. The way he was acting, how he was glaring his friend, there was nothing childhood in it like the previous times, when Jack was messing with him, but something extremely serious was seemed to be bothering him this time. Even though Jack looked like he didn't even notice the strange tone in Crow's voice.

"Crow…" I tried to say something but Jack cut me sharply.

"If it was obvious you think I was asking you right now?" he roared, taking a small break only to take a breath.

I can tell that both of them are pressured and their patience had run out completely. Deep down I didn't blame them, we are all stress and under pressures, and with every passing minute more information was gushing driving us crazy and giving us more things to worry about. But without realizing it I was now angry with both of them. We can't help Yusei by arguing and we are wasting our precious and non-exist time.

"Jack calm down," Rua offered a friendly pat on his shoulder, but seeing the former king ready to burst out, apparently he didn't even notice.

"But as always you are acting like a maniac, just because someone asked you a question," Jack was shaking, no doubt trying to hold himself in.

Both Dark Sage and Dark Magician Girl were staring at the old teammates, wonder was written on their faces. Ruka rolled her eyes, shaking her head bitterly and murmuring with low voice. I thought I heard the words, 'idiots' and 'Yusei' and I felt my heartbeats grew stronger, feeling my temper raising.

"What else can I say if you can't see what is in front of you?" Crow retorted, "Now do me a favor and shut up…"

"No! You two shut up right now," I scolded them strictly unable to stay calm anymore, "Jack you are not helping," I added as he got ready to disagree rather than obey this time, "and Crow," I turned to his direction, "we are all on the same side, trying to find a way to help Yusei and now none of you are helping! Now if you have a question or anything that is bothering you calm down and spill it so we can find the answer."

I saw Rua with the corner of my eyes staring at me with fear and awe, ready to run and hide, but I paid no attention. I huffed hard, feeling Ruka's soft hand on my shoulder. Only then did I realize I was trembling and it wasn't only because I was angry with my old teammates; I was worrying about Yusei and everything else.

"Please, we are all afraid and worrying, and arguments are not leading us anywhere. The time is against us, so please, try to cooperate properly," her voice cracked, begging with her eyes.

I shut my eyes taking a deep breath. "Ruka is right."

Jack nodded in agreement throwing a softer glance at the orange-haired duelist but said nothing. I saw Rua rolling his eyes. Jack will never learn. He is not the type of a guy who will apologize out loud to anyone. However Crow didn't move an eyelash.

"Crow," Ruka referred to him with sympathy in her voice, "I know what is bothering you, because I was wondering the same," she added and I blinked.

"So you know that it's not the same for me," Crow bit his lips and the young girl nodded with understanding.

_Alright, what did I miss here?_

"Can someone explain it to the rest of us?" Rua asked, scratching the back of his head.

"You see… Unlike us, Crow has no special gift," Ruka explained.

I gasped, covering my mouth with one hand. _How foolish of me? _This information was as so obvious as Crow insisted and yet, it didn't cross my mind once.

Crow glanced away awkwardly. "You guys are the gifted ones, you can wake up your ace monsters from their frozen sleep, you can fight, you can call for Crimson Dragon to make you Signers again… but what can I do? I'm not like you; I have no gift like you guys."

"Crow…" I called out for him without any idea of why.

"I have no special power in me," Crow dipped his head.

I pressed myself to think of something to say, something encouraging, but it was Rua who spoke first.

"But if Crow has no special power at all, then how come and he was able to travel between so many dimensions?" he asked and left us speechless. Even Jack's eyes widened in shock.

I didn't think about that either, but he had a point and I admit that I was surprised. By Rua's question and the fact that it was Rua who thought it at the first place.

"So, apparently you have something Crow," I mused, and he groaned.

"Yeah I know, we talked about it, but I know myself," Crow empathized.

"Aw Crow," Dark Magician Girl sounded as she spoke gently and I jumped.

I almost forgot that she was in the room too. But then again I almost forgot where I was and what I was doing here.

"Tell me Crow," she continued, "what kind of power do you want? What kind of gift do you seek? What special ability would be enough to satisfy you, so you can feel equal with the rest of your friends?"

Crow shrugged. "I honestly don't know, but Rua and Ruka have this strange connection, Aki is a psychic, Jack has the Burning souls ability, that's why he is so 'touch me not'-" Jack grunted, but Crow ignored him and continued, "I don't know what it would be better, or strong enough, but I want to help my friend too, so I guess anything would do."

"Aw Crow," Dark Magician Girl smiled; a warm smile filled with understanding but also with a hint of…_joy_? "Crow, Crow, Crow," she recited, "Your determination is what will lead you farther than you ever imagined."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Crow frowned.

"It means that you need no special gift," Dark Sage replied softly.

Crow lifted an eyebrow.

Dark Magician Girl gave him an intense glance. "Crow, tell me, what kind of gift do you need, since you are already holding the greatest gift of all?"

"What?" Crow immediately reacted with surprise.

"Say that again?" Jack asked, absolutely astonished.

As for me, I gasped looking at Crow and Dark Magician Girl alternatingly. Rua paused and let his jaw drop while Ruka shrugged.

Dark Magician Girl smiled. "Surprised huh? But it's true, Crow. The power within you is strong enough and strong to put you on the same level with your friends' special abilities. And of course to protect you, when you are traveling from one realm to another. So you don't have to feel inferior or less than them, you don't have to feel not good enough to stand up with the rest."

"Umm," Crow hummed awkwardly, "I don't follow."

Jack rushed to agree. "Yeah! Where is this coming from? No offense Crow, but it's a decent question."

"Sure it is," the orange-haired man nodded and I rolled my eyes. Those two can set up an epic argument, and then forget it the next minute. "Not that I'm not happy about it, but I have no idea of what you're talking about, what power?"

"Your courage, your will, your loyalty, to the ones you love and care about. A special ability is not always necessary to call yourself a gifted man," Dark Magician Girl replied softly,

Crow scratched the back of his head, still uneasy, like he needed more evidence than that. To be honest, I was needed more too.

Dark Magician Girl insisted. "If my words are not enough to convince you Crow, then take a look to your past duels."

"What do you mean?" he gave her a doubtful glance.

"You are the only non-Signer man in the history who has ever challenged a Dark Signer and came up as a winner!" Dark Magician Girl blurted as if she was holding it for some time now.

Crow paused, staring at her with an open mouth and Jack followed his example only a couple of seconds later.

"That makes sense," Ruka mused.

"Of course it makes sense," Dark Sage spoke this time, "Crow, your loyalty to your friends pushed you to your limits, awakening a power inside you capable enough to overtake the black magic of the Dark Signer. Have you ever thought 'what have I done?' back there when you challenged Bommer? Have you ever thought, during your duel with him or after it, that you were marching to your death?"

"No…" Crow confessed with low voice, shifting his weight from one leg to the other, "I didn't actually care about the danger, or even if I was putting my life into a deadly match. I had just found out that my little orphans were missing… I thought they were all dead," he shivered saying the last word, but took a deep breath, ready to speak again. "So I wasn't actually thinking straight, I wasn't carrying about my safety."

"Exactly," Dark Sage stated, "Dark Singers can only be beaten by a Signer. But you, even without being one, you managed to survive for a life-and-death duel, just as dangerous as a Shadow game- as a victorious man."

Dark Magician Girl cleared her throat. "This is not a simple feat, but an unexpected victory too, and a proof that inner strength can overcome any obstacle, and defy everything, even fate and destiny. So what else do you need to feel equal to the others?"

Rua grinned widely, slamming a hard hand on his shoulder. "Wow Crow, I never thought about that. But I guess it's true, it sounds logical after all."

"It's true," I nodded in agreement, trying to smile too, but I found it a bit hard at this hour.

Jack stared at his childhood friend giving him a curt nod. "I never thought I would ever say this, but what you have, is apparently is unique. Well done."

* * *

_No way to leave Crow with nothing at all! And it makes sense too, right? But I also sense that our heroes are a bit pressed… too pressed actually… heck who wouldn't after all those info?_

_I would like to say few things: Please vote in my POLL… it's about this story! Also I post 2 new stories :D Oh yeah! "Against gods and demos" and "Jewels of Love: Amber and Cobalt – Veils of Mysteries" if any of you want to RxR, I will be really glad!_

_Please follow and like me in my FB page: _**_www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /_**_ **517827508268822** __(remove _spaces) you will find my OCs sketches for my upcoming story ;)

_My thanks to: **The Man with Imagination**, **Junior-sama**, **Aysu**, **G.A. AnimeFan4**, __**MarauderRebelFan**__, **PrincessWindNight**, **CrimsonSnowScarletFate**, **BlackRoseServent**, **Scarletleaf66**, **ObsessedwReading**, **Shadowhope4ever** and **AangandKatarfan**, for their reviews! Guys you really put a smile on my face! ^_-_

_My special thanks to my betas _**_azure blue espeon_**_ and **Aysu**!_

_If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... __^_^_


	42. Many destinies

**Chapter 42 – Many destinies**

_Ruka's POV_

I smiled to him with warmth. "You see? You are like us, and even more. We have something extra to make us special but you are special on your own strength."

Crow smiled too, rubbing his neck awkwardly, and I held back a chuckle seeing him blushing a bit. "Well t-thanks."

If we were back to our world, together, away from danger and Yusei awake and happy among us, I think we would tease Crow more. But the severity of the situation and all this chaos still hanging above our heads didn't let me enjoy this moment.

"And now let's get back to the reason of why we are here at the first place," Dark Magician Girl said.

I chuckled bitterly. Alright, now that we've all cleared up the part with everyone's special gift and Crow is feeling strong and ready to help us with all he's got, it's time to going back and explain the rest of the Prophecy. And I have a bad feeling that I'm not going to like the rest. Mostly because it's still an unknown and unsure scary future. I mean it's easier to accept something you have already lived and then have someone just explain to you the missing parts, but the future…

I bit my lips. I'm not sure if I want to hear anything related with it. But with Yusei still missing and time hanging above our heads, I have no choice but force myself to stand up straight until Dark Magician Girl explains every single, horrible, awful, and unpleasant detail.

I looked up my friends. They were all confused and exhausted, as much as I am. Too much information for our poor minds, too much evidence and still we have more to hear. Jack was standing expressionless as always, with his arms cross. But as hard as he is trying to pretend he is, I know that deep down Jack is loyal to Yusei. My brother was looking around the big statues with awe and fear, like he didn't know what to do or how to react. Crow was like his clothes were on fire sweating all over waiting to hear the rest, and a dark shadow was covering his eyes.

And the last one: Aki. She was pale as ghost, like she was ready to pass out in any minute now. I can't blame her, she showed a lot of strength but she is also quite sensitive when it comes to our raven-haired duelist and everyone knows why, except maybe for the interested one.

"We have to be Signers again," Aki whispered.

I can tell for sure that only my unbelievable and crazy brother is the only one, who is happy and looking forward to it. He is over-reacting as always. As soon as he will get the Heart of the Crimson Dragon back, I'm 100% sure he will wish to be released from this duty again.

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "Yes, you have no other choice."

"Hmm, I know that this is what the Prophecy says. But why do we have to be Signers again?" Crow mused.

"Crow, you didn't pay attention?" Jack scolded him softly.

"I'm sorry Jack," it sounded like Crow was forcing himself to reply politely, "but I heard a lot of information all together and somehow I lost it. Can you do the counting?"

I held back a giggle, but I was relieved, seeing that this time he was trying to stay calm. The last thing we need, is another show of yelling and death glares.

Jack rolled his eyes and grunted. "Sure. We have to wake up the guards from their frozen prisons…"

"AKA the guardians of the five Elements and also our Signers dragons," Rua grinned.

"… Afterwards, all together, we will ask for Crimson Dragon's help and he will make us Signers again…"

"The lights are our old birthmarks," Aki muttered grabbing her forearm at the same time.

"… Then –somehow- we will create the Shield to protect the universe…"

I tried to keep my voice steady. "All together, both us -as Signers- and our dragons."

"… With this way we will protect the universe and we will shield the gates between the twelve dimensions once again…"

"Preventing the energy from flowing freely everywhere," I said again.

Jack nodded. "Right, I think I said everything. Any questions?"

"A ton actually, but I will save them for another time," Crow shifted his weight from one leg to another.

"We have no time," I reminded him, "if you have questions ask them now."

Crow took a deep a breath. "Well then, how are we going to wake up our dragons, or how we will ask Crimson Dragon's help and again, what is this Shield is, and how we will be able to create it? Will we be safe by doing this because I heard something about giving some of our energy, and since we need Yusei to do that, aren't we supposed to search for him first, so he can hear the story too and everything else? And most important of all: how much time do we have left?" the black feather duelist only paused to take a breath, "and I have more questions actually, but let's start with those, shall we?"

Aki buried her face to her palms. "Is this nightmare ever going to stop?" she spoke into her fingers, so that her voice was muffled.

Rua knitted his eyebrows in sympathy. "Aki, don't give up, we are still here and Dark Sage with Dark Magician Girl will explain all Crow's questions," and tapped encouragingly on her back.

Aki shook her head wiping her eyes trying to pull herself together. I admired her courage. If I was in her place, I'm not sure if I would be able to stand on my feet right now. More possible than likely I would be to lying on the floor as clearly I would have fainted.

"Actually Crow," Dark Magician Girl hesitantly looking away, "the next paragraph of the Prophecy is explaining most of your questions."

"That's nice," he nodded, a strange hint of sarcasm in his voice, "even though, I'm not sure if I'm really ready to hear the answers, but I guess we have no other choice."

The mistress affirmed his words. "You are right to feel like this, you're not going to like the next part. But as you said, we have no other choice, and you need to know everything. So I will start right away."

Dark Magician Girl took a deep breath and I did the same, preparing myself.

"Also, before I say anything else, I must inform you that this part of the Prophecy is the most blurry of all."

Jack lifted one eyebrow. "What you mean by 'blurry'?"

"It's means that it is the most important part and there are many ways to explain it, and not only one," Dark Magician Girl explained with low voice, "in few words the whole explanation can change if the facts change and the facts are strongly connected with the warriors of the Prophecy and their decisions."

"You mean our decisions," I stated.

"Exactly," she nodded, "the Prophecy shows that they have many destinies. Everything is at the edge of a cliff, _the line is thin, the future is fragile, and the cost too high to keep the peace_, the future is still unknown…"

"Tell us something that we don't know yet," Jack snarled.

"I will if you do me the favor to keep comments like that one to yourself, Jack," Dark Magician Girl shot him a glare and Jack hushed, as she cleared up her throat. "Well, the next line is a bit confusing…"

"_The answer lies in the six ones_," Dark Sage said.

"We are the six ones?" Aki asked.

"I'm not sure if this is refers to the six warriors, or the six Elements Dragons, or to all of you."

"Since we all count as one, don't we?" I muttered.

She nodded. "You do, and I believe the same. When the Prophecy says the _six ones_, I think it's all of you. That means that not only do you have to wake up your dragons but you have to do more than that."

"Like what?" Rua lifted his eyebrows.

"You count as one so…" Dark Magician Girl looked like she was trying to find a way to explain the unexplainable, "somehow you must find a way to unite and become one with them."

"May I ask how are we going to do that?" Crow wondered.

"By using your inner powers," Dark Sage replied but the answer didn't satisfy him.

Actually, none of us were satisfied by his answer.

"Yeah, I know," the orange-haired duelist said hastily, "but _how_, are we going to use our gifts to wake them up and unite with them?"

"Not physically unite, but mentally," Dark Magician Girl made a slight smile.

"Aw!" Crow scratched the back of his head, "but still…"

"I don't understand a thing!" Rua gushed, finishing the Crow's line.

The mistress gave him a warm smile and I rolled my eyes seeing my twin brother blush and smile back shyly.

"Unfortunately I can't tell you exactly how you are going to do it. I can show you the door but you, and you alone, will have to walk pass through," she informed.

"What do you mean?" Aki inquired.

"The powers you hold are more complicated than you think, you don't hold only special gifts, but you hold the powers of the universe too," Dark Sage replied slowly.

"What…?" Jack reacted.

We exchanged startled looks and I shook my head as my brother shrugged bewildered.

"You see," Dark Magician Girl started, "from the day you mastered your dragons you took their powers inside you too. To some of you," her gaze fell upon Aki and Jack, "it helped you to wake up your special gifts. Aki…"

The magenta-haired girl lifted her head.

"You remember the first day you gained your Birthmark, right?"

Aki shivered. "Actually, I won't forget that day of my life," her voice was a whisper.

Dark Magician Girl knitted her eyebrows. "I understand, because the same day your psychic powers woke up too, had you ever wondered why?"

Aki swallowed hard. "What do you mean? My disappointment and the anger I felt…" her voice faded.

"I'm sorry, Aki," Dark Sage said and everyone turned to face him. "But what you believe is wrong. You didn't wake you psychic powers from your anger and disappointment for your father. Remember Aki, it's very important. Remember."

I was confused but seeing Aki's expression I changed my mind. Our friend was pale as a ghost, her lips twitched like she was about to cry and suddenly, as she realized something vital, she covered her mouth losing the last drop of her color from her face.

"No… don't tell me… all this time I thought… but I was wrong…" she gasped.

I stared at her confused muttering as agony and pain was written on her face.

"Aki…?" I tried to ask but Dark Sage pointed at me to stop.

"You understand now?" he asked dipping his head.

Aki nodded.

"What…?" Crow started but Aki cut him off.

"I was playing with my deck back there," she murmured bitterly, bowing her head, "Black garden… Black Rose was in my hand I wanted to summon her on my next move but I lost my chance. My papa's phone rang and he had to go… leave me again. I was sad and angry and then…" she paused and held her right forearm.

She didn't need to say more. I think I can understand. Suddenly my heart filled with compassion for her as I remember how I felt when I saw her for the first time at the Fortune Cup. Her deck was in pain, just like her heart.

"I thought, all those years I believed that because of my feelings I was able to wake up my powers and hurt him… but it wasn't because of this, it was because of _her_, right?"

Dark Sage nodded slowly. "That day you mastered Black Rose, the guardian of the Earth Element. Since that day she was under your command, but not only. Some of her powers woke up your special gift Aki, and after you were able to make the duel real the Crimson Dragon choose you and marked you too as one of the Signers."

"So it's wasn't my…"

"No. It wasn't your sadness and the pain in your heart," Dark Sage said gently.

"Aki," Dark Magician Girl went closer and stood at the front of her.

The psychic girl for a moment refused to look at her in her eyes but in the end gave up.

"Aki," the mistress started, "Black Rose's powers also lay within you. As I said, I can show you the door," she held Aki's hand before continuing, "_Like Earth you must know balance_."

"Balance?" the young girl repeated, "between the darkness in my heart, my anger and my fears. Before I had balance I was a witch… but after… I found more than that," her voice cracked.

"You did," Dark Magician Girl nodded holding her hand this time closer to her heart closing her eyes.

When she opened them her eyes locked onto Aki's staring deep inside like she could read beyond her. Then she smiled leaving her hand. "You may hurt hundreds in the past…" Aki shivered, "but you will save thousands in the future," she stated, releasing Aki from her blazing gaze.

I didn't have time to wonder what just happened or if Dark Magician Girl saw something in Aki's future or not when she came to me.

"Ruka," she said, reaching her hand to hold mine. I felt her soft skin unable to think of anything. "My sweet Ruka, Ancient Fairy is the guardian of the Water Element and…" she closed her eyes and when she opened them they were glinted in a way, like she was able to see things that no one else could. Then she smiled, "_and like Water, you must feel peace_."

I licked slowly my lips. "Peace? Even in the darkest times and the most troubled thoughts…"

"Peace must be shine in your heart, and gives hope and motivation to thousands of kids, that you will be surrendered," Dark Magician Girl smiled more.

I had no idea what she was talking about but for an unknown reason I was able to understand. Every word she said. I nodded as she turned and this time she approached the tall blonde duelist.

"Jack," he stayed silent and she took his hand and held it tightly, repeating the same process as she used with Aki and me. "Red Demon is the guardian of the Fire Element, you already know that deep in your soul and it may be unnecessary to say it, but_ as Fire you must be alive_."

Jack remained expressionless, giving her only a curt nod. "Always," he whispered flatly.

I exchanged a confused look with my brother, as Dark Magician Girl pointed to Crow and Rua. My brother walked to her feeling stiff and for one last time she held both of their hands in hers.

"Life Stream and Black Feather are both the guardians of the Wind Element my friends."

"We know…" my brother murmured.

"Then you both will know that _like Wind, you must fly free_."

"Fly…?" Crow's voice came out hard.

"Fly away, fly forth, fly into the future," Dark Magician Girl was smiling, a bright smile on her face.

I smiled too. It wasn't actually a surprise; Crow is always flying, when he was younger, a boy who lived in Satellite, he was dreaming of flying away. His deck, his d-wheel, his deepest desire in his heart was leading him onto his path. And my brother, he will _fly_ too, I know he will.

"As I told you, I can only show you the door," Dark Magician Girl turned her back to us, facing the great statue of Crimson Dragon and his servants' tablets, "you will have to cross it and all together must create the Shield. Even _if the risk is high_."

"Risk?" the question escaped my lips without even realizing it.

I hear several gasps behind me.

"You must understand. Everything has its own cost but it's not necessary to be this way. You can write your own destiny," her voice had a hint of fear.

"What do you mean?" Crow blinked.

Whatever it is I'm sure it's not good. I prepared myself for the worst.

"_You are the Shield_," Dark Magician Girl whispered still staring the legendary Dragon, "_you_ and _your_ dragons. All together as one heart _you_ can save us all."

"And the cost?" Jack was now pale too.

"You may give everything you have. But this is only one option, a small one. It's not necessary to be this way. The Prophecy has many destinies."

Her words cut like a knife. It's was too much pressure, too hard… too hard to breath. The walls were closing around me making me dizzy. I swallowed, trying to maintain my coolness and stay focused, even if her voice was echoing inside my head as her words were spinning and running through my mind. I wanted to shout, scream, kick and hit everything in my vision spot and I shut my eyes, trying to hold my angst inside.

"Yes!" Aki burst out at the same time when my heart almost broke into thousands of pieces. "The Prophecy has _many_ _destinies_, but we have only _one life_!"

* * *

_Aw, poor them! I think I'm so mean with them… they are the Shield. Does any of you expected to hear something like this? lol… More information and answers and there will be more at the next chapter. Stick with me and you will find out. ;)_

_My thanks to: _**_Junior-sama_**_, _**_The Man with Imagination_**_, _**_Scarletleaf66_**_, _**_ObsessedwReading_**_, _**_G.A. AnimeFan4_**_, _**_CrimsonSnowScarletFate_**_, _**_PrincessWindNight_**_, _**_AangandKatarfan_**_, and _**_Guest_**._ Guys you really put a smile on my face! ^_-_

_**Guest**__, I don't know who you are, but thank you for RxR my story! Your support means a lot to me!_

_Please follow and like me in my FB page: _**_www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /_**_ **517827508268822** __(remove _spaces)_. You will find my OCs sketches for my upcoming story ;)_

_My special thanks to my beta __**Aysu!**_

_If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... __^_^_


	43. The beginning of the end

**Chapter 43 – The beginning of the end**

_Ruka's POV_

I couldn't breathe. Fear gripped my heart and squeezed it hard. Dark Magician Girl was right, but Aki _was_ right as well.

"One life…" I whispered.

I didn't know what to do or what to think and feel. The truth was here, dancing before my eyes but I couldn't take it anymore.

"It doesn't necessarily have to be this way," Dark Magician Girl turned to look at us sharply.

"What other options do we have then?" Jack almost roared. "You just told us that we will put our lives on the line and you think we will take it easy?"

"I never thought you would take it easy," the mistress retorted, "I'm saying that the Prophecy has many endings."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Crow shouted.

I blinked. It's not in his style to be so angry but I can't blame him. I would be angry too, if fear hadn't taken ahold of me.

"The lady over there is saying that there is a chance of surviving," Jack replied flatly.

His lips were a thin line and his eyes were shooting fire. Now I have no doubt about his special ability. His Burning Soul was ready to set everything in the room on fire.

"Is that good or bad?" Rua raised his voice to catch some attention, "I mean what other options do we have?"

"Only one Rua," Jack sneered, glaring at Dark Magician Girl at the same time.

"We will die then?" my twin's eyes were wide.

"It's not even an option," Crow muttered, anger was lurking in his tone.

"No…" Aki's voice barely sounded.

As for my voice, it was nowhere to be found. I didn't dare to blink. I wanted to say something encouraging to my brother, give him some hope, there must be a way, Dark Magician Girl said that the Prophecy has many destinies, so there must be an explanation to all this. I wanted to say more, but I couldn't. I simply _couldn't_.

"Why have you brought us all here, just to tell as at the end that we will put our lives at the front to save the world?" Jack snarled, with a hint of warning.

The mistress opened her mouth, getting ready to say something but it was Dark Sage who spoke first.

"Enough!" his voice cut like a knife.

A dead silence followed his demand, no one dared to breathe. Everyone was staring the old wizard as his calm expression was now gone and flames almost appeared in his eyes. I dare say that Torunka was as scary as Dark Magician Girl's words.

"Enough," he said again, this time a little bit softer, but still sharp, "We brought you here to explain everything, so you will be able to understand it, so pull yourself together and think what our mistress had just told. The Prophecy has many destinies; _nothing is settled_, not yet."

"So we won't die?" Rua asked hopefully to get a positive answer.

"I can tell you everything, I can explain every word of the Prophecy, show you the door, but _you_! Only you and you alone will cross it" Dark Magician Girl stated.

"With our own will…" I whispered suddenly finding my voice.

"We have a choice?" Aki wiped her tears, peering into Dark Sage's eyes.

"Everyone does," was all his answer.

Dark Magician Girl rushed to affirm. "Of course you have. I'm simply explaining to you the whole situation we are all in. Yes, the Hyper-fibers are into a war, every world is in danger…"

"Yusei is in danger," Aki murmured.

"And we are in danger too," Crow added with low voice.

After Dark Sage's burst everyone dropped the tone of their voice.

"… Yes. Everything you said is also true," Dark Magician Girl continued, "but I think you forget something."

"Forget what?" Crow asked.

I shook my head, knowing the answer already.

"As you said, you already are in danger," Dark Magician Girl pointed out, raising her voice a bit, but not angrily. "And not only you, but we too, everyone and everything is in danger, our lives are on the spot since the _white rivers_ started their war. So don't act like we keep you away from the truth. I tried to explain everything and I'm sure that you can understand how important this information is. You can understand how hard is for us to explain every single detail and how painfully it is that we have to ask you to risk your lives to save us all."

"But…" Jack mouthed like goldfish out of water. Then he lowered his gaze saying nothing.

"You must understand, everything is at the edge of the knife, one bad move and everything will be lost," Dark Magician Girl emphasized.

Both Crow and Jack got ready to say something but the mistress lifted one hand to make them stop.

"I know. It's not easy for you to lift a burden like this but don't think that you have no choice -because you do. Of course you do."

"But then the world…" Rua knitted his eyebrows.

"The Prophecy I made thousands of years ago says nothing about your loss, or that you will have to give your life and that you have no chance."

"But something about a sacrifice…" Aki tried to ask something but he voice cracked.

"This part is not referring to you," Dark Magician Girl replied but a shadow passed through her eyes.

"T-then to w-whom?" the magenta-haired girl mumbled.

"We will get there soon; first I have other things to explain."

"Then explain," I stared at Jack as he didn't order as he usually does, mostly he was pleading with her to say more.

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "As I said we are already in danger and the Shield that the universe will need it will be created by you, along with your dragons. You are the Shield and don't take this information lightly please."

"I don't think that we can do that, even if we wanted," Crow, muttered wryly.

"Or underestimate what you are able to do."

"What we are able to do?" my brother gushed.

"More that you can even imagine," Dark Sage replied softly, taking back his calm face.

"Huh?" Crow acted, getting a real wide-eye.

I held a smile only because of the severity of the situation, but Crow was really funny.

"It's only a risk that you will have to take, not a fact or something settled," Dark Magician Girl announced and only when her words came out of her mouth I was able to breathe again.

"So we won't…" Aki's voice fainted again.

"As I said is a risk. I won't give you false hopes or fake evidence. There is a risk, you may not make it, but trust me when I say that this way is not strong or the most possible to come true. You are stronger than you think."

"So we won't give our lives?" my twin wondered.

I rolled my eyes and I wasn't the only one. I started slowly, "Rua, it's only a risk; we may not be able to survive, after we create the Shield, but this is an option and it's not the most likely one."

"Aw! That's a good thing then."

Crow nodded. "Sure it is."

"Still is your choice if you want to be the Shield. Maybe one of you or all of you doesn't want to take this risk but if that happens, things will be more complicated."

"More?" Jack grunted.

Dark Magician Girl took a deep breath. "You see, you are all special, in many ways. First you have your gifts, then you won't be alone in this, your dragons will be with you and all the power they possess; and they are not weak, they hold the power of the Five Elements and you have a little of this power within you."

"And don't forget Crimson Dragon. He will transform you into Signers again and you all know what that means."

I nodded my head slowly seeing my friends doing the same from the corner of my eye. Sure we know, since we were Signers for some years of our lives. We have a special bond as friends but we had an extra one as Signers and not only. Back there when I had my birthmark I was able to see, feel and do more things than anyone else could. So yeah, I perfectly know what it will mean, if I become a Signer again.

"So all of you, like one spirit, one heart you will be able to unite and create what the universe needs the most. You will put all your strength and energy at the front protecting everything," Dark Magician Girl stared us intensely.

"Your hearts must beat like one. Each one of you will support and complete the other having your gifts, the dragons, the Elements and Crimson Dragon by your side. All together the risk you will have to take is almost faded. We won't tell you that there is no risk, but you have more chance to survive and save the world, if you are all together and focus with each other," Torunka added.

"But still you have a choice," Dark Magician Girl informed again, "if any of you don't want to take this risk at all feel free to stay back. But if you are not all together the risk becomes higher. Take your decision in free will but you must know that after there is no going back."

"It's not a surprise. If we are less, then our attempt to create the Shield is harder. So I need no time to take my decision. I already have it; _I will fight_, I will wake Red Demon from his frozen prison and I will take the risk," Jack stated flatly.

I stared at him with awe. Maybe Jack is the only one of my friends who can still surprise me by his actions.

"I'm in. I won't leave my friends fight alone and risk their lives and I would be there only watching and not fighting. So yeah, I'm in!" Crow stated with the same determination.

"Me too," my brother gushed pointing at his chest, "the world needs our help one more time. I would be glad to help even if I didn't have any special gift or anything. I did my best the last time the world was needed us and I will gladly to it again."

"Yusei is in danger and the whole universe too," Aki whispered. She sounded like she was forcing those words out, "if I can do something about it then I will offer my help and do anything. I will do whatever it takes, with risk or without risk."

She was so strong. Aki showed a great determination. I guess it's my turn, but I was run out of words. Everything I could possible say, it's already been said. So I simply nodded my head saying, "I will help too."

Dark Magician Girl was all emotion; her voice came out hard. "My friends… my brave warriors, I don't know how to thank you…"

"You don't need to," Jack was surprised me again.

"The universe will owe you once again," Torunka dipped his head lightly with respect.

"Glad to help," Rua grinned but I doubt if he understands the whole situation fully.

But that's my crazy, carefree and over-reacting twin brother. I smiled at him and he returned the smile.

"Umm, may I ask something?" Crow lifted one finger.

"Yes?" Dark Magician Girl prompted him to talk.

"Umm, since it requires the presence of us all, to create the Shield, aren't we supposed to try to find Yusei first, so he can wake up Stardust dragon?"

Aki lifted her gaze full of hope. I bet she is _dying_ to see our raven-haired friend alive and standing on his feet once again.

"Crow has a point," Rua mused, "So where is he?"

Dark Magician Girl bit her lower lip. A shadow passed through her eyes and my heart sank in my chest. This can't be good.

"Yes, the Shield needs all of you, so Yusei in no exception, but…" she turned her gaze on the Dragon's tablets around Crimson Dragon's statue, "You see… Stardust, it's not here…"

"What?" I asked slowly as I needed some minutes so her words can set in.

Jack lifted her eyebrows utter confusion. "What you mean he is not here? He is with the others…" he turned at Stardust's tablet, "frozen and…" he paused suddenly losing his color.

"What happened to him?" Aki couldn't hide the fear from her voice.

I turned my head to see the tablet and examining it closer. They were right. Stardust's table had something different.

"He is frozen too," Rua muttered scratching his head at the same time, "but he is so…"

"Blurry," I finished his line.

And it was true. The dragon was only a step away from fainting and disappeared completely.

"Why Stardust is like this? Where is he, what happened to him, is he in danger?" Aki almost shouted the questions.

It was clear as day that she may shoot one question after another but she was trying hard to held herself. She was worrying.

"No one is safe in those days Aki, but try to relax," Dark Magician Girl suggested, "I know it's hard but Stardust is already awake. If fact he didn't freeze like the others did."

We were exchanging a started look.

"Where is he then?" Crow asked.

"He is with his master from the beginning. Stardust and his master were together since the day Yusei's mind trapped away from his world," Torunka replied.

I blinked surprised, I didn't see that coming.

Torunka showed us the tablets with one hand. "You don't have to worry about Stardust now, mind only to wake up your dragons. After that you will go and find him."

"Wait," Aki exclaimed suddenly and we all turned our attention on her.

"What is it?" Dark Magician Girl wondered.

"We still have more," the magenta-haired muttered, "the Prophecy has more. Like what will happen if we fail?"

"_The Balance of the Elements will be lost forever_," Torunka replied softly.

It's not the first time I'm hearing this. But still it's painful to hear it.

"What does that mean? How is this line translated?" Rua asked.

"It's still a blurry part in the Prophecy because we don't really know what will happen to the universe," Dark Magician Girl replied, "the only sure part is that it is not good. The world will face some kind of destruction, but we are not sure…" she paused to take a deep breath, "maybe it will be a complete destruction of everything… maybe…"

"The sure thing is that without balance no world can exist, and the five Elements are the base of everything. If the motif of a building is destroyed then the whole edifice will collapse," Torunka continued.

"So if we fail everything will…" Aki's voice died the same time I was ready to close my ears, I didn't want to her the rest.

"There's hope, there is always hope, but…" Dark Magician Girl whispered.

"What hope?" Jack inquired.

"The last hope, as hope never dies. The last paragraph of the Prophecy. _But even if this happens the last resort, will show the way_."

"Of course," I muttered, "_One man can make the difference, as long as there is courage in his heart_."

Regulus was the first who said those words, when he came to me using Momentum's energy.

"Is this part referring to someone in particular or in general?" Jack's tone was sharp. He wanted an answer and he wanted it now.

"Actually the Prophecy is referring to someone who has the power and the will to stand up into the war," Dark Magician Girl was tense turning her gaze back at the tablets and the Crimson Dragon's statue.

"Alone?" Aki wondered.

"Maybe not alone, but this man, whoever he is, he should possess a tremendous power, or works with someone else equally strong so with their combined effort they will be able to create the Shield," Torunka replied.

"Is there anyone out there with such a power in his heart?" Rua asked moving his gaze from Dark Magician Girl to me and the rest of our friends, but I didn't actually pay attention.

My mind was elsewhere. Unlike my brother I had no doubts about this man's existence. I was hearing everything carefully; every single word Torunka and Dark Magician Girl were saying, when something else hit me. Like something light up in my head, another missing question into this storm of information, a small detail but with great value. Dark Magician Girl explained everything about us, but…

"What about Yusei?" I suddenly asked.

I heard Aki gasping as everyone turned their gazes on me.

"What about _his_ special ability, or power, or anything?" I added.

My heart sank. Something was whispering the answer in my ear the already, I just didn't want to hear it.

* * *

_Phew! They DO have a choice but… it this really a choice? And oups! What Ruka thought… what hit her… what missing detail? For one think we can be sure: whatever it is, is NOT good! Everything is the edge of the knife. The Beginning of end just stared!_

_My thanks to: **Scarletleaf66**, **The Man with Imagination**, **Junior-sama**, **ObsessedwReading**, **PrincessWindNight**, **CrimsonSnowScarletFate**,_ _**Aysu**, **G.A. AnimeFan4**, **Shadowhope4ever (x2)**, and **MarauderRebelFan**_._ Guys you really put a smile on my face! ^_-_

_Please follow and like me in my FB page: **www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /** _**_517827508268822_**_ (remove spaces). You will find my OCs sketches for my upcoming story and not only... trust me, you will see them sooner than you thought ;)_

_And guys... you can vote in my POLL too, it's about this story! :)_

_My special thanks to my beta _**_Aysu!_**

_If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	44. The last dimension

**Chapter 44 – The last dimension**

_Crow's POV_

It was Jack who gave the answer. "That's not hard to guess. Yusei mastered the Clear Mind ability, right?"

"Right," Dark Magician Girl affirmed, but something in the tone of her voice intrigued me.

Like there is something more than that, _something_ beyond the lines. And I was right, because the next moment she opened her mouth to speak again.

"But to use Jack's words, Yusei's ability is also unique, extremely unique, fortunately and unfortunately different and powerful, like no other."

For a reason she stole the breath from my lips. Maybe the reason was her previous words about the last paragraph in the Prophecy. But is it possible?

"W-what you mean?" Aki's voice stuck in her throat, as she swallowed hard.

Dark Magician Girl bit her lips. "Yusei also holds a special gift. But it's different, far different from yours, far different from Crow's, different in many ways."

_Even mine?_ But mine is not actually a gift, is more like an inner power of will. I thought I was living in a nightmare. _What else are we going to hear soon? What secrets are lying beyond this man, and his fate?_ The same fate we were following from the day we all gained our birthmarks. I grew up with the man; I thought I knew him; we are brothers even if do not share the same blood. He was always a special gifted young man, extremely loyal, smart, and creative but yeah… Yusei was always a bit… _different_.

"What's wrong with Yusei?" Rua inquired, a shadow passed through his eyes.

"You are right about his ability," Dark Magician Girl started, with a low voice, "Yusei managed to master 'Clear Mind' and because of this he discovered a new power, he surpassed his limits and became stronger. Stronger than he ever was."

"Thank you for summarizing it, but we already know that," Jack sneered, but he stepped backward when Dark Magician Girl shot him a strict glare.

I held back a chuckle only because I was waiting to hear the rest.

Dark Magician Girl continued after another warning glance to Jack. "He also found his way for the Accel Synchro Summon -a sign of revolution that you guys…" she paused, giving us a closer look, "you, and everyone in your time, are not ready to understand, not yet."

"What do you mean in our time?" Ruka asked before I was able to absorb her words.

Dark Magician Girl only licked her lips shaking her head, like she was fighting against a decision. "Um, my friends, you are not ready to hear this, yet," she informed, but for an unknown reason she looked like she was still fighting.

"I don't understand a thing," Rua murmured, looking to his sister for some support.

At least he has his twin. If I looked at my 'brother' with the same confusion I bet he would laugh at me. Yeah, Jack has that kind of attitude.

But Ruka had a strange expression on her face, like her mind was elsewhere, traveling into her deepest thoughts or feelings that her gift is giving to her. Both Jack and Aki were confused as much as I was.

"Can you please at least tell us why?" the psychic girl asked politely, trying to divert her answer.

"Alright, I will tell you since it will help you to understand him better," Dark Magician Girl finally gave in.

"Understand what?" Rua had now an extra puzzled expression on his face.

The rest of us exchanged startled looks.

"You see, somehow Yusei found a way to the future," Dark Magician Girl announced.

"What?" the question slipped out of my lips as I stared at her in utter confusion. What the heck is she talking about?

"What you mean by that?" Jack asked.

"Time travel?" Rua added a bit unsure about his own word.

Dark Magician Girl rushed to replied, "No, no! Not time travel. Forgive me, I may have used the wrong word, but what your friend did, was revealing a path to a faraway capability; a future evolution."

"You mean, that Clear Mind…" I started trying my best to make a whole question. Something that was extremely difficult since I didn't really understand what she was trying to explain.

"Not his ability," Dark Magician Girl stated, "But the Accel Synchro he uses is a future summoning way."

Suddenly a dead silence filled the room, as everyone was hanging from her words. I never saw that coming, but then again, it's Yusei we are talking about.

"But it's not totally a surprise because a man from future taught him this, a man called Antinomy."

"You mean Bruno?" I corrected.

"Bruno and Antinomy is the same person," Dark Magician Girl explained and suddenly I remembered what Yusei said after the Ark Cradle incident.

"You are right," Jack mused, apparently he remembered too and I nodded in agreement.

"I almost forgot but yeah, the strange man with the red glasses revealed that he was our Bruno," I muttered bitterly, at the thought of the super mechanic man, who joined our team.

Dark Magician Girl nodded. "Antinomy first taught him this, and Yusei tried and succeeded to master Clear Mind and made his own Accel Synchro, but…" she paused taking the time to watch our reaction, "But he didn't stay there."

"What do you mean?" I had a bad feeling about it. My heart was beating like crazy. I'm positive that everyone can hear it.

"He moved forward and found a new ability to master," Dark Magician Girl explained.

"Your friend is unique, because not only has he mastered a supreme power that no one at this time of the ages are ready to learn and understand, let alone accept, but he also managed to evolve his gift," Dark Sage said calmly.

"Into what?" I blinked.

"What are you talking about?" Jack was staring at both of the spirits absolutely astonished.

"What new power?" Rua asked only a second after.

"Yusei found a path of an incredible strength and marched on, until the very end," Dark Magician Girl replied, "Top Clear Mind," she added and for some reason her word cut like a knife, "he captured evolution itself, growing his inner power, making his own Delta Accel Synchro summon."

My eyes widening as her words slowly set in. My head was burning now. I think she was right saying that we are not able to understand this power, ability and summon. It was the first time I was hearing something like that and it's not a surprise that it was Yusei, the one who involved into this. Oh man!_ What's wrong, or better said, different with this man?_

"He learned this from Bruno… I mean Antinomy too?" I wondered.

"In their last duel," Jack sighed heavily.

Dark Magician Girl affirmed. "Yes, you understand now why Yusei is unique too? Why is his gift is different than all the others?"

"I think so," Rua shrugged.

Sure that was something new and strange, but for some reason I wasn't as puzzled as I first thought. Not all of the information was new, I mean, Yusei is unique and special. Well, I already knew that. What I don't know and what I'm afraid to ask about, is the same feeling which is making me feel a cold chill creep up my spine. _The reason?_ Simple, along with the power, the responsibilities soon follow and then troubles, and angst and more.

"Yusei holds the key of evolution, improving his ability to grow more. He moved farther, trying to be stronger and bigger, he is unique in many ways, just like his dragon," Dark Magician Girl continued.

I knitted my eyebrows. "Stardust? What about him?"

"What do you mean? Alright, I understand why Yusei is different, but what about his Dragon? I mean he is a Guardian of one Element like the others. What makes him more special?" Jack asked.

"Not just an Element. Stardust is holding the Element of _Ether_; the fifth Element, the strongest one, the only one which can bring all the others together," Dark Sage said.

"No wonder why Yusei mastered that dragon then. Stardust is the bond between the Elements and the Elements Dragons, just like Yusei is our bond," I mused.

"Oh no!" Ruka exclaimed and immediately I realized that something was wrong. And I mean _really wrong_ this time.

"Ruka?" Aki called, her face pale as ghost, like she understood something too.

_What is happening? Is all this chaos so clear in their eyes?_ Because I don't understand much. In fact the more I learn from the spirits, the less I understand.

"The fifth Element is Ether, isn't it?" the young girl asked, angst was written in her face.

"Yes," Dark Sage replied slowly staring her.

"So when the Prophecy says that, _the answer is hidden within the fifth_ …" Ruka suddenly stopped dead in her tracks with eyes widen in shock as some kind of realization hit her at full force.

Her brother ran to her putting his hands on her shoulders. "Ruka? What's wrong? What did you realize?" he was pale as ghost.

But she stayed silent with empty eyes. I exchanged a started look with Jack.

"_You are running out of time. One of us... one of you is in a terrible danger. He may not make it_," Ruka whispered Ancient Fairy's warning from her vision.

I blinked the same time when Aki gasped and covered her mouth with one hand. Everyone in the room turned their gazes on the young girl, waiting.

"What's wrong?" it was Jack who spoke first as he clearly is not really famous for his patience.

Ruka didn't answer him. She was still lost in her own thoughts and feelings, like she was living an out of body experience. Sure she is here, but her mind is elsewhere.

"After all this time, now I'm able to understand her words. It was so simple, almost a logical conclusion, but back there, in that dream-vision she gave me, everything looked like a puzzle, a mess of information and unanswered questions. But now…" she whispered and sweat dropped, "_That's it_."

"What is what Ruka?" Rua looked like he pulled her out of her thoughts.

She blinked focusing her gaze on her brother and mouthed, trying to say something but apparently something took the right words from her mouth.

"Ruka?" Aki looked at her with agony.

She tried hard to pull her thoughts together. "I… I finally realize, what she was trying to tell me; _Ancient Fairy_."

"What you mean?" I asked.

"What she was trying to tell you then?" her brother squeezed her shoulders a bit.

But Ruka stayed there unable to say a word, again.

"Ruka don't leaving us like that, if you have found any clue about Yusei in this mess of information please share it," Aki pleaded.

She blinked probably trying to pull herself together. "The Prophecy, remember? The last paragraph says that someone will create the Shield but after it will break," she whispered.

I scratched the back of my head. To be honest I don't really remember what the Prophecy was saying. It was Dark Magician Girl who brought me out of my bad memory's effect repeating the words.

"_The shield will hold, but shatter later. One will pay the price so the others can survive. This is what we call sacrifice_."

Then I blinked, once, twice, thrice and I gasped. This isn't good. _Is it possible?_

"But in order to create the Shield… I mean it requires the presence of us all, both us and our dragons… how can one man… oh no!" Rua eyes widen and become like golf balls. He turned at the two spirits. "Don't tell me, Yusei is not…" his voice stuck in his throat.

"No," Aki was ready to pass out in any minute.

"But Yusei can't," I started trying to put my thoughts into one straight line. "I mean is he even that strong?"

Ruka whispered, tears were shining in her eyes, "Crow, _The answer is hidden within the fifth_, Ether is the bond and we all know how strong a bond must be."

I nodded. Of course I knew. A bond is strong enough to change destinies. Years ago when I was fighting along with Jack and Yusei against Rex Godwin; it was the same day I gained my birthmark and become equal with the others, simply because Crimson Dragon chose our _bonds_ over Rex's _power_.

"Yusei also has a gift like us but his gift is unique. He holds the key of evolution and with Stardust…" Ruka continued.

"They are counted as one," Aki's voice cracked.

"But Yusei isn't that much of a fool to sacrifice himself, not that we are here and so close, we are a team!" Rua exclaimed with passion.

"Yusei _is much of a _fool," Jack snarled, "that bloody idiot!"

"Easy there," I tried to calm him down, but deep down I was totally agreeing with him.

We are so close, we passed through so many difficulties, aggressive dimensions, a vast desert, we were captured and escaped, we searched and found portals from one world to another and now we finally are here, hearing the truth. We know what we have to do and both Dark Sage and Dark Magician Girl are here to tell us how to do it. But Yusei is, as Jack's said it, _that_ fool! Loyal to his values and ready to give up his life for us and the rest of the world.

"We have to stop him, before it's too late," I heard Jack's voice like it was meters away, dragging me out of my thoughts.

Aki nodded. "Yes! Just tell us what we have to do and we'll do it."

"Don't worry my friends," Dark Magician Girl tried to comfort us, but seeing my friend's reactions I can honestly say that she failed to do it. "As I said the Prophecy has many outcomes, and the last paragraph may never be true."

"What does that mean?" Rua raised his eyebrows.

"It means that if you manage to wake up your dragons and go find Yusei in time, then…" Dark Sage started explained but Aki cut him off.

"Yusei will be safe?" she gushed staring at the old wizard like she lost it.

"Yusei and Stardust have no chance if they are alone, but all together the chances to come back alive are higher," Dark Sage declared flatly.

"What are we waiting for, then?" Aki turned to face us.

"Aki?" I gasped staring at her stunned.

She had a strange flash in her eyes and her voice was full of determination. _What happened to Aki? The same one I was traveling along from one dimension to another? The one who was filled with fear and agony?_ I think that Aki is long gone because now the psychic duelist was standing up straight, willing to do whatever it takes.

"Yusei needs us and you heard what Dark Magician Girl said, we will awaken our dragons and then we will find him and we will prevent him from sacrificing himself to save the universe alone," Aki stated.

"Yusei is not alone, he was never alone," Rua grew serious like Aki.

"As long as Jack Atlas is here you have nothing to worry about."

I rolled my eyes. "We are a team, Yusei is our bond and we will keep this bond alive."

"Just tell us where Yusei is?" Ruka inquired.

"We already passed through many worlds and parallels dimensions. We didn't find him." Rua muttered.

"And you won't find him if you keep searching for him like that," Dark Magician Girl paused and sighed heavily, "I thought you would have already guessed where he is."

"Umm," I hummed unsure, we definitely missed something here.

"Yusei's mind is trapped, he cannot escape from his prison cell," Dark Magician Girl lifted her head watching with a blank gaze; "he is _trapped_! If he was free he could move from one world to another, just like you did."

"No way!" Ruka burst out at the same time I came to the conclusion, "That can't be! You are saying that Yusei, our _Yusei_ is trapped in the _Shadow Realm_?"

* * *

_Oups! This can't be good, no way to be good. Poor Yusei, I feel such a bad person! He is trapped in the __Shadow Realm, is this can get any worse? Can his friends save him in time? Stick with me and you will find out! ;)_

_My thanks to: _**_Scarletleaf66_**_, _**_The Man with Imagination_**_, _**_CrimsonSnowScarletFate_**_,_ **_Junior-sama_**_, _**_G.A. AnimeFan4_**_, _**_MarauderRebelFan_**, **_ObsessedwReading_**_, **Aysu** and _**_Shadowhope4ever_**_ for their reviews. Guys you really put a smile on my face! XD_

_Please follow and like me in my FB page: _**_www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /_**_ **517827508268822** (remove spaces). You will find my OCs sketches and profiles for my upcoming story and not only... trust me; you will see them sooner than you think ;)_

_And guys... you can vote in my POLL too, it's about this story! :)_

_My special thanks to my betas **azure blue espeon** and _**_Aysu_**_!_

_ If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


	45. Deadline

**Chapter 45 – Deadline**

_Aki's POV_

"Shadow Realm?!" Rua sounded absolutely astonished. "But...! He can't be there... I mean..."

"No way!" Jack yelled. "Shadow Realm is not like the other dimensions. The gates that lead to the kingdom are closed. Only someone who possessed a Millennium Item or a Shadow Charm can bring him there."

Crow frowned. "Jack, didn't you pay attention? Dark Magician Girl explained it already: the gates to this world were opened from the Hyper-fibers' war."

"I _know_ that," Jack replied wryly, narrowing his eyebrows at the orange-haired teen. "I'm just wondering how the hell Yusei got trapped in the Shadow Realm."

Crow had no reply. He just gnawed at his lower lip.

A hush fell over the place after that. Everyone seemed to be in deep thought, mulling over the said question. Now that I thought about it, though, I wasn't sure how either.

But it was Dark Magician Girl who broke the long and fidgety silence. "As long as the Hyper-fibers are close to one another, we have access to this dimension."

"You also said that all the wizards and spirits in the land did their best to close this gate again and ensure that it stays that way, right?" Ruka asked meekly. "That's why Ancient Fairy and Regulus couldn't contact me..."

Dark Magician Girl nodded.

I sighed.

I was tired and confused. All these new information were making my head hurt. From their dazed expressions, the others couldn't seem to believe the truth. Me either, actually. I couldn't even remember the last time I got some rest, food, or water. The previous days felt like they were just a dream, a nightmare actually, a buried memory. But now, I was still living in this awful reality and worse, I couldn't see the end coming soon—a good end, a happy one, like in every bedtime story.

When I was a child, I thought that life was a fairytale, like the ones my mother used to read to me before I go to sleep, but soon after, I found out that not only was life _wasn't_ a fairytale but also hard and unfair too.

I scanned the Royal Room and saw statues of the Egyptian Gods, the Phantom Demons and the Crimson Dragon. I shook my head. Yes, life wasn't fair and now my dearest friend was in danger. Inside this room, myths and legends were resting. Those beasts and demons from the ancient years... Heroes from the past fought them, or with them, to save the world.

And now, once again, the world was in danger and needed our help one more time. I felt familiar with this feeling—a strong feeling that told me that one of my friends wasn't among us anymore, and that the world was only one step away from destruction...

I gave my head a hard shake to dislodge that worst thought. It wasn't the best memory to remember—that final battle with Z-ONE. Not to mention the pain I felt every time images of us—my friends and I—crying appeared, believing that Yusei was dead as the Divine Temple crumbled. But then, he surprised us all. Everything was over as he flew in the sky, returning to us, well and alive. The relief I had felt there and then was tremendous. He had tricked Death himself, changing his destiny only because he was special. I came to the conclusion that he was holding more powers in him than any of us could ever imagined, and from what I saw, I was right.

That day was the worst and best day of my life. And now, we were here in a similar situation where Yusei was in danger. It seemed like a reminiscent of what happened six years ago. Back then, if he were to really die, I would've hated myself. For that one moment where I thought that he was dead, I felt a sudden deep regret. I felt so hopeless since I couldn't do anything but stand by and watch as the temple disappeared while he was trapped inside. I couldn't save him. But now, I could. I still had time. I had _a chance_ to save him. So I would. I never wanted to have that feeling of hopelessness or regret again. I could be strong; I would do anything and try my very best.

But I still felt the pain of the words piercing my heart like an arrow, my breath almost caught in my throat. Yusei was trapped in the worst place that'd ever existed, living in an endless cycle of pain and darkness. He must be suffering in there. We must hurry.

"Why did you keep Yusei in there?" I asked in a troubled voice.

"We didn't keep him in there. The Shadow Realm has an extremely dangerous power that we must prevent. You must understand that it's not actually a world like the previous ones you'd visited. It works in a different way. Yusei's mind is trapped in a 'prison cell', and as much as we would like to search for him, we won't find him," Dark Sage explained.

"It makes sense, although it's still a bit confusing..." Crow admitted.

As if on cue, Dark Magician Girl added, "It's kind of like a mind-trapping dimension. We are here physically and spiritually, both body and soul, but Yusei is not; his body is back on Earth but his mind is locked in there.

"We keep the gates to this realm close, but the wizards can reopen them and allow you to enter. We are at the Temple; this world has connection with the entire twelve dimensions in our universe. And as wizards, we can open the portal to the dimension we want."

My blood ran cold. I guessed we had no other choice then.

Rua couldn't hide the fear in his voice when he asked, "Must we really go there?" But Dark Magician Girl just lowered her head in reply. It was her silent way of saying _yes_. "Isn't it dangerous for us to go there?"

Dark Sage shook his head. "No, not for you. You are strong enough, and your dragons will be there with you. You have nothing to worry about."

"But how are we going to find Yusei?" I asked.

"That's easy. As Jack said, this realm is like a mind trap. You can find him; you have bonds with Yusei, and all of you are inside his head. So if you focus on one another and mentally unite, his 'prison cell' will reveal itself."

I simply nodded, but I wasn't sure if I had completely understood what he said. Our task sounded easy according to him but I wasn't so sure. Then again, we had no other choice. We had to do this. If we succeeded, we could see Yusei again.

No, not _if_. We _will_ succeed.

"But you must hurry my brave warriors," Dark Sage warned, "time flies."

Oh yeah, the time! I had forgotten everything about it. "How much time do we have left?"

Dark Magician Girl shifted her weight from one leg to another, avoiding our gaze for a moment. Her reactions were signaling a bad omen to me. I wondered if they were due to the Prophecy, _again_. "Is the Prophecy blurry on this part too?"

"Fortunately, it's not," the old wizard replied. "In fact, it's rather clear on it. '_But beware of the heavy wave on the fiftieth day'_."

"Heavy wave?" Rua repeated, while Ruka continued, "Fiftieth day?"

"When did this counting begin again?" Crow asked, lines of distress forming on his face.

"Since everything had started," Dark Magician Girl replied. "I'm sure you remember what happened to your world when a wave hit the Earth."

Of course I did; we all did. It was chaos and madness. Everything was turned upside down. I still remember the Earth shaking furiously. If I tried, I could even feel the sensations of those tremors, making my skin crawl. And as if reading my mind, she added, her voice filled with sadness from within, "What you remember is only the beginning of what will follow. The Heavy Wave is coming, and is coming very fast."

"What do you mean by 'Heavy Wave'? Is it something stronger than the one we saw?" Jack asked.

The young wizard nodded. "Stronger, yes, but it's also worse—far worse. The Heavy Wave is one that we all must avoid. It's the worst one compared to all the others."

"Why?" I asked, but something inside was telling me that I wouldn't really want to know.

"This is the reason why time is against us, the only reason why we're all worrying. The Heavy Wave will be the last one we will ever see in the Hyper-fibers' war. The last in many ways," Dark Sage said.

"After the Heavy Wave, the Hyper-fibers will move again in the sky, nothing is stable anymore," Dark Magician Girl explained. "Their war will be over, but..."

"But what?" I prodded, sounding a tad too impatient than I'd intended. But all these secrets were killing me. I just hoped they would tell us everything in one go already.

Dark Sage continued with a frown, "This wave won't be like the others we saw and felt those days. It will be stronger and more powerful than anything else before. It will be so strong that it will penetrate into every world and destroy everything in its path."

"_Everything_?" Ruka gasped.

"And _everyone_. This wave will be deadly for everything we know."

A lone sweat cascaded down Jack's temple. "But the Shield we will create is to protect the world from the Heavy Wave, right?"

"Right." Dark Magician Girl nodded. "We have no time to waste anymore; every minute, every second, is valuable. The Heavy Wave is coming." She'd said that last sentence in such firm tone that it scared me.

"When?" Rua asked.

"According to the Prophecy, the fiftieth day is our deadline," the young wizard replied.

"So... which day is today?" I asked tentatively as I tried to make the mental calculations in my head, but failed. There were just too many things to keep count of.

Thankfully, Dark Sage began, "The first day is when war started. Yusei understood it immediately, and he fell into coma fourteen days later."

So that was fifteen days.

Rua faced his sister. "Then Ruka had a warning from Ancient Fairy before she froze in her tablet..."

"And after seven days, we were united again," Ruka added after a while.

"We visited Yusei at the hospital the next day," I said. _Twenty-three._

"For two weeks, we were trying to gather all the information we can," Jack continued. And that added to thirty-seven days.

"Then, Sherry came." Crow lifted a hand to his chin, as if in deep thought. "Kiryu and Misty came two days later, and a wave hit the Earth... Then, Team Ragnarok appeared and helped us, and we passed through the Momentum's gate..." I drove my fingernails into the palms of my clammy hands in an attempt to quell the increasing fear. The count was at forty now.

Dark Sage nodded. "Furthermore, you spent two days at the Desert World, two days at the Winged Beast realm, and another two days in the Dark World where the Supreme King's kingdom resides, and two more in the Spirit World."

"And don't forget: one more day in my kingdom," Dark Magician Girl added.

I sucked in a sharp breath; disbelief overwhelmed me as realization hit. "That's forty-nine days already…"

"You mean the Heavy Wave will strike tomorrow?!" Ruka cried, incredulous.

"We have only one day left?!" Jack hollered.

"_No_, not even a day." Dark Sage seemed hesitant to tell. "We have less than a day. Only a few hours left."

As the words sank in, a monstrous terror seized me, sending a thrilling shiver down my spine.

"We don't have much time left," Dark Magician Girl said. "You must hurry and wake up your dragons, and find your friend. Now that you know everything, our fate is in your hands. Please, save our world..."

_..._

_Only a few hours left to wake up our dragons and find Yusei..._

...

"It's time to wake our dragons," Jack announced suddenly. The conviction was there, though.

"But how are we going to do that?" Crow asked, darting a quick glance at Black Feather's stone tablet.

"Stand in front of your Dragon and focus," Dark Sage ordered. We obliged. "You and your ace monster share a special bond. Unite with them. Wake up your powers along with theirs...

"Now, close your eyes... And _feel_..."

I _did_ feel something, albeit after a while; a surge of power flooded through me, a gentle and warm aura. Not only that, I could _hear_ something too; it was the thumping beat of a heart… A familiar rhythm…

Black Rose Dragon's.

Then, I heard another heartbeat, and another, and another… I was pretty sure that those heartbeats belonged to my friends instead, and I believed they could hear mine as well. We were united, as one.

"Touch the tablet, and the ice will disappear..."

...

The cold and solid feeling on my palm was gone.

**...**

_Jack's POV_

**...**

I might feel like an idiot but I simply didn't care.

My best friend was out there in the worst place of the universe. Yusei deserved something better than that. If there was someone who deserved to suffer, then that would be me and me alone. I betrayed him years ago in the worst way possible, stealing his first duel runner and ace monster, the same monster that he had mastered. _He_ and not _me_! I kept going in my endless pursuit of excellence, without realizing that what I had lost wasn't only my friend, but myself too.

And then, he returned to my life.

I knew that one day fate would bring us together again, as if our lives were entwined. What I didn't know was that Yusei opened my eyes to reality and finally set me free from my blindness.

I was a joke, a fake...

I was nothing.

But I had changed.

I felt life in me again. For the first time, I felt _alive_—like my life had a purpose, like it wasn't just about duels and kingship. My very soul was burning, undead flames of eternity. It was Yusei who brought me back from the dead and I wouldn't make the same mistake again. I would do anything to save my friend, just like how he did everything to save _me_. After all, Yusei and I still had some business to settle with each other. I had never felt more alive than that day, in our last duel together six years ago.

So mark my words Yusei: one day, you and I would meet again; we would duel with all we have. And our hearts shall beat like one, one more time.

**...**

_Crow's POV_

**...**

I never thought of myself as someone like them, strong and equal, and someone special; special not as in having a special ability, but special in my own way. This journey had taught me that, and it was all because I had met Yusei.

They all held a special gift, even Rua had one, and I was the only exception. But I didn't care.

I might feel ashamed and sometimes, a burden, but not anymore.

I didn't mind if I could never be like them and gain a special ability. As long as I had a beating heart, I would keep fighting and never give up, no matter how hard the situations were. Even though everyone told me that it was impossible, I would not give up, just like the legendary duelist years ago…

He had a dream and was ready to fight until the very end. That was what I was about to do. He was nothing more than an ordinary man, just like me.

He chose to become a legend, to give hope to the people, just like what I did by continuing Pearson's dream.

He was ready to devote his life to achieve his dream, just like how I was ready to do anything for my friend.

He took the decision and flew away, just like how I would fly—fly far, fly high, fly free, and fly hard into the future, soaring high above the clouds.

I could hear my heart pounding loudly in my chest.

But it was not only my heart; it was everyone's.

**...**

_Ruka's POV_

**...**

I was child.

I was scared. I was shy.

I was alone, with the exception of my brother.

My gift was scaring me and only Rua was holding on to me, even if I never told him to do so.

But my twin was—is—and forever would be my source of strength.

I had a birthmark. I didn't know what to do. My gift was out of control. I was feeling the pain in other people's hearts. Their pain was becoming my pain. And my fears had only become worse. I was lost.

Then, I met Yusei...

And Aki, Jack, Crow, and many more…

I found my friends, and my bonds with them increased.

We became a team, each supporting one another. With their support and help, I overcame my fears until they were all gone. I owed it to my friends and Rua. They stayed by my side; they gave me faith, because we never abandoned hope.

And I would keep that hope.

My heart no longer felt fear anymore, because it was filled with peace.

I had faith in the future.

I had faith in the hearts that were now synchronized with mine.

**...**

_Rua's POV_

**...**

Yusei couldn't die. It was just not fair.

He was my idol, replacing Jack's place in my heart.

In my eyes, he would always be _the_ strongest duelist ever, and the hero of Neo Domino City.

He was always there for me, like an older brother. And I felt like he was—_is_—my brother.

He helped me to overcome my fears as a child. He gave me advices. He even helped me to grow and become stronger, to become a better brother for Ruka. He always encouraged me to move forward into the future, to walk my own path, to grow up and be strong, to have dreams.

I wouldn't fail you, Yusei.

I would keep going, as hard as it was sometimes.

I would keep running.

No matter what, I would always keep trying and fly forth.

My heartbeat grew stronger, faster and louder.

My chest felt like it had more than one heart beating inside it.

**...**

_Aki's POV_

**...**

I was hurt. I was angry. I was scared.

I was a witch. I was a monster.

I was everything that a society disapproved and hated.

Somehow, I felt lost. I had lost everything. I had even lost myself.

Until I met him—Yusei—my savior, my hero, my friend...

He accepted me just the way I was. He offered me his hand, his help, his friendship, his care and his love.

And only when I decided to accept them did I find my way.

He was like a guiding light, providing me with warmth and comfort, guiding me out of an intricate labyrinth.

I wasn't lost anymore, though. I had found my balance, relieved of my anger and hatred, all because of him.

And I would do anything to return the favour... because my heart beat for him. And I would embrace any fate that life would throw at me, as long as we lived under the same sky, as long as his heart beat along with mine in the same tune...

Just like how another heart was now beating alongside my heart.

...

I thought time had stopped, or rather, had started to move faster. I wasn't sure. It wasn't the first time I was feeling like this, but now, it's deferent. It wasn't only me and my friends. It was the strange, howling winds that blew mercilessly under the Elements Dragons' strong wings.

_The Shield... _We had created it. Our energies, in the form of multitude of colours, were surrounding us...

I couldn't hear anyone's voice but I didn't need to. Inside my body, it felt like more than one heart was beating. I knew they were here with me. I could feel it.

I couldn't see either but it wasn't necessary. Colours were blinding me, hiding everything and rendering my sense of sight totally useless. No matter how many times I blinked, trying to focus on the storm, it was useless.

But I knew I wasn't inside the Temple anymore. I knew that Dark Sage and Dark Magician Girl had done what they said they would—opening the gate to the Shadow Realm. I could hear their voices in the deepest depths of my memories, as if centuries had passed since the last time I saw them. But maybe it did pass. The place where I was walking right now felt like a prison, a world of punishment and despair, where time ceased to exist.

The strangest thing was that I wasn't feeling fear anymore. I was not alone. I felt as if I could easily lay down here and rest for eternity, if only the strong beating inside my chest didn't keep me awake and conscious. I felt _safe _in here, like it was a place of peace and paradise.

But we must find Yusei soon. He was near. I could feel it. His presence was just nearby. He was close. I could hear his heartbeat too. I could sense him. He was somewhere near.

_Somewhere... But where?_

I felt like I was walking in a maze, trying to find my way out.

_Where__ does a human mind start and end?_

A mind wasn't something so simple; it was something complicated in a way that even the owner couldn't comprehend it. It was a puzzle, a riddle, a game, and we must find a way to master it.

I was flying at great speed, but I wasn't flying alone. I couldn't explain it properly, but I could feel each and every one of my friends as a separate form, but as a whole being too. I couldn't tell where my body and mind ended and where the others had begun. It was like we were fused together by bonds beyond time and space.

A great force was pulling me like a magnet and I knew exactly where this force was leading me. I felt waves of energy hitting me—Yusei's energy…

Our time was ending. We must hurry. We were so close. I could feel that he was somewhere near. We only needed a few more seconds to reach him. The maze would disappear soon, but the bonds we always had and still share were strong enough to show us the way to the correct location of Yusei's mind. We had to get to him as fast as we could.

_Please, just a few more seconds..._

...

All of a sudden, I felt something—something that was holding me back.

...

I wasn't flying at the same speed anymore; I felt like I'd slowed down.

_But why?_

Yusei was only a few more meters away. I could feel him, and I was pretty sure the others could feel him too.

...

And then, I slammed into something hard. It was a wall made of pure energy, and it was blocking our connection with Yusei; it was stopping _us_ from reaching _him_. The point of contact was terrible and I suddenly felt as if all my senses were dead. I couldn't see. I couldn't hear. But worst of all, I couldn't feel anymore; I couldn't feel the others' presence; I couldn't feel _Yusei's_ presence.

A sudden rush of adrenaline surged through my entire body; my mind was flurry of erratic thoughts. All the fears and terrors not previously experienced were precipitated into a single moment of realization.

I was alone.

Those synchronized heartbeats... I could no longer feel them. I could only feel one—my own. Shadows engulfed me, disrupting my bonds and connections with my friends, as if they were welcoming me into their eerie darkness.

Hot tears stung my eyes.

_Are we too__ late? Have we failed?_

My thoughts were blurry; I couldn't think straight. I only felt myself falling deeper and deeper into the vast realm below, into an endless dark pit, and it seemed like I would never touch the ground.

All my fears had come to life, dragging me to my utmost nightmare of a single thought:

_Yusei… Yusei is… gone._

* * *

_OMG! Before I said anything else I want to inform you that this story IS NOT OVER YET! Poor Yusei, I bet you all hate me now or you want to kill me in my sleep… but if you do that then you won't be able to read what's next, and trust me, things are so interesting now ;) They finally find their way and wake up their dragons… but… but… what happened to Yusei?_

_Also I want to apologize for my late update, but something very important and sad happened to one of my betas and now I hope with all my heart things will be fine soon!  
_

_My thanks to: __**PrincessWindNight**__, __**The Man with Imagination**__, __**Scarletleaf66**__, __**G.A. AnimeFan4**__, __**ObsessedwReading**__, __**AangandKatarfan**__, __**Symmetry Obsessed Shinigami**__, __**Crazyanimelover1289**__, __**TrueDragon11**__**7**__ and __**CrimsonSnowScarletFate**__, for their reviews. Guys you really put a smile on my face! XD_

_And please follow and like me in my FB page: _**www . facebook pages / Melan-Anime /**_ **517827508268822** (remove spaces). You will find my OCs sketches for my upcoming story and not only... trust me; you will see them sooner than you think ;)_

_My special thanks to my lovely beta __**LittleKrus**__!_

_ If you like it, review! If you don't, review anyway... ^_^_


End file.
